Seven of them are being treated while the rest have been recovered.
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“We expect to identify more positive cases”, the official statement said.
World Health Organization earlier had suggested pregnant women not to visit those countries or territories where Zika virus has been circulating as it is linked with birth defects. Since local transmission of Zika was first confirmed in July, Florida officials have anxious it will negatively impact the state’s tourism industry.
Other parts of Southeast Asia have reported dozens of cases of Zika, which in Brazil has been linked to thousands of suspected cases of microcephaly, a rare birth defect, but there are fears the true numbers are masked.
Taiwan on Monday issued a travel advisory for Singapore, urging travelers to watch out for mosquito bites and cautioning pregnant women and those planning to conceive to postpone trips to all areas with Zika cases. Health authorities said earlier this year that Singapore could experience a record 30,000 dengue cases this year.
“MOH can not rule out further community transmission in Singapore, since some of those tested positive also live or work in other parts of Singapore”, the statement said.
The five, who include foreign workers, were undergoing further tests at Singapore’s Communicable Diseases Centre. MOH is in touch with the Defence Ministry on this and has been told that no one there has symptoms.
Another Singaporean man works at the construction site and lives in Sembawang Drive.
Singapore hosts thousands of foreign constructionworkers, a lot of them from South Asia.
Current areas of concern are: Khatib Camp, Sembawang Drive, Kranji Road, Joo Chiat Place, Senoko South Road, Toh Guan Road East and Lor 101 Changi.
Gan said that having Zika here was “almost inevitable”, given the country’s position as a travel hub.
During a visit to Boca Raton on Monday, Scott stressed that there have been just 43 cases of the disease reported in a state of 20 million people. By the fifth day, the person is usually no longer infectious.
In addition to the health risks, state officials worry that news of Zika could frighten tourists from visiting Florida.
During pregnancy, an unborn child can suffer a awful, irreversible birth defect, called microcephaly, where the baby is born with a small head and sometimes a small brain.
“MOH and NEA have been proactive in engaging the different stakeholders to identify possible cases, conducting screening and testing to identify the confirmed cases, and promptly announcing such cases to the public once they have been confirmed”, he wrote on his Facebook page.
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All medical services in Singapore had been alerted “to be extra vigilant” and immediately report any Zika associated symptoms to the health ministry.
