Month: March 2020
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Plans in place to increase Singapore’s capacity for COVID-19 patients if needed: Gan Kim Yong
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SINGAPORE: Contingency plans have been put in place to boost the Singapore healthcare system’s capacity to care for COVID-19 patients if the need arises, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said on Friday (Mar 20) as the country recorded 40 new coronavirus cases. Singapore has in recent days seen a surge in the number of new cases,
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Spain COVID-19 death toll tops 1,000, nearly 20,000 infected
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MADRID: The coronavirus death toll rose to 1,002 in Spain on Friday (Mar 20) after 235 people died in 24 hours, and the number of cases approached 20,000, the health ministry said. The spiralling number of infections has propelled Spain into the top four worst-hit countries in the world – with the figures growing as the
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Malaysia reports third COVID-19 death, patient had attended religious gathering
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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia reported its third fatality related to COVID-19 on Friday (Mar 20). Case 152, a 58-year-old Malaysian man, had previously attended a religious gathering at Sri Petaling mosque. Advertisement Advertisement READ: Malaysians with work permits to continue working in Singapore: MFA Health director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah said the man was admitted to Hospital Tawau on Mar
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Ignoring government appeals, some Jakarta mosques hold Friday prayers
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JAKARTA: Some mosques in Jakarta still held Friday prayers on Mar 20 despite an earlier appeal by the government to suspend religious prayers and gatherings for the next two weeks. On Thursday evening, Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan said communal religious activities including Friday prayers in mosques and Sunday masses in churches should be suspended due
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
‘There is no lockdown’: Lawrence Wong debunks WhatsApp rumour about COVID-19
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SINGAPORE: Messages circulating online that Singapore will be “locked down” this weekend over the COVID-19 outbreak are untrue, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said on Friday (Mar 20). “There is a rumour going around on WhatsApp – some of you may have heard the rumour – that there is going to be a lockdown in
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
China sends medical supplies to hospital in Malaysia state hit hardest by COVID-19
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KUALA LUMPUR: China on Thursday (Mar 19) sent its first batch of medical supplies to the Sungai Buloh Hospital in the Malaysian state of Selangor. Malaysia on Friday reported 130 new COVID-19 cases, taking the national total to 1,030 and making it the country with the highest number of infections in Southeast Asia. Advertisement Advertisement Selangor has
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
More cancel flight plans as countries restrict travel to stop COVID-19
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SINGAPORE: As more countries implement travel restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19, more travellers find themselves having to cancel their flight plans. On Wednesday (Mar 18) the Government advised that all travel overseas should be deferred, a move aimed at reducing “the risk of Singaporeans being infected with the virus when abroad and spreading it to other
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Rohingya, UN step up efforts to get Malaysia refugees screened for COVID-19
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KUALA LUMPUR: The UN refugee agency and Rohingya community leaders in Malaysia are stepping up efforts to get refugees who attended a Muslim gathering to come forward for COVID-19 checks, after cases linked to the event jumped across Southeast Asia. More than 670 infections in the region have been linked to the gathering last month at
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Italy overtakes China’s coronavirus death toll
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ROME: Italy on Thursday (Mar 19) overtook China’s coronavirus death total and braced for an extended lockdown that could see the economy suffer its biggest shock since World War II. The Mediterranean country’s toll reached 3,405 after it recorded 427 new deaths on Wednesday. Advertisement Advertisement READ: Italy reports 475 new coronavirus deaths, highest one-day toll of
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
COVID-19: Malaysia cases cross 1,000 mark, 130 new patients reported
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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia reported 130 new COVID-19 cases on Friday (Mar 30), bringing the total tally to 1,030. Health director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a statement that 48 of the new cases were related to the mass religious gathering which took place in a Sri Petaling mosque from Feb 27 to Mar 1. Advertisement Advertisement “At the
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
COVID-19: Activities for seniors suspended for another 14 days as part of stricter safe distancing measures
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SINGAPORE: Activities for seniors by public agencies will be suspended for another 14 days to safeguard their well-being amid the COVID-19 situation in Singapore, the Ministry of Health said on Friday (Mar 20). MOH announced stricter safe distancing measures on Friday, including the extended suspension of activities for seniors, to prevent further spread of COVID-19. Advertisement Advertisement Since
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Methodist churches in Singapore suspend services to ‘break the chain’ of COVID-19 infection
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SINGAPORE: The Methodist Church in Singapore will suspend services for an initial period of two weeks to help “break the chain” of COVID-19 infection, said Bishop Chong Chin Chung on Friday (Mar 20). The decision was made after a meeting with the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and various church leaders on Thursday, said
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Jail for man who ‘viciously’ assaulted then-wife in front of their crying kids, fracturing her face
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SINGAPORE: A man who viciously assaulted his then-wife in front of their crying children after learning that she wanted to leave him was sentenced to a year’s jail on Friday (Mar 20). The 36-year-old man cannot be named in order to protect the identity of the victim, who has since divorced him. Advertisement Advertisement The
Written by Gabriel HerveyMarch 20, 2020
Police investigating offensive NUS Atheist Society post on Facebook: MHA
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SINGAPORE: The police are investigating after a Facebook post was put up suggesting the Bible and the Quran as alternatives to be used in the event of toilet paper shortages. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday (Mar 20) said that it has received a number of complaints about the post. Advertisement Advertisement The page, titled
