SINGAPORE, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Singapore reported 5,324 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, bringing the total tally in the country to 184,419.
This is the first time the number of the daily cases has surpassed the 5,000 mark. Of the new cases, 4,651 were in the community, 661 were in migrant worker dormitories and 12 were imported cases, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said in a press release.
The infection numbers were unusually high because many COVID-19 cases were detected by testing laboratories within a few hours on Wednesday afternoon, the MOH said.
The ministry noted that it is looking into the "unusual surge in cases within a relatively short window," and will closely monitor the trend for the next few days.
A total of 1,777 COVID-19 cases are currently warded in hospitals, with 308 cases requiring oxygen supplementation in the general ward, 76 cases being unstable and under close monitoring in the ICU, and 66 cases being critically ill and intubated in the ICU. The current overall ICU utilization rate is 79.8 percent.
In another development, 3,172 cases were discharged on Wednesday, of whom 484 are seniors aged 60 and above.
Ten more patients have passed away from complications due to COVID-19 infection, bringing the death toll to 349, the ministry said. Enditem
