Mandarin Orchard to open on Jan. 2, 2021 as no ongoing Covid-19 transmission found: MOH

The hotel premises have been thoroughly disinfected, presenting no risk of transmission to guests.

Kayla Wong | January 01, 2021, 11:22 PM

Mandarin Orchard Singapore is due to reopen on Saturday, Jan. 2, after the Ministry of Health (MOH) determined that there is no ongoing Covid-19 transmission.

No further transmission beyond the 13 individuals who served SHN at the hotel

MOH previously announced on Dec. 19, 2020 that they were investigating the 13 reported cases of Covid-19 infection amongst individuals who had served Stay-Home Notice (SHN) at the hotel between Oct. 22 and Nov. 11, 2020.

The 13 cases were confirmed to be infected between Nov. 2 and Nov. 11, and arrived from countries like Bahrain, Canada, Indonesia, Myanmar, Netherlands, Philippines, South Korea, UAE, UK and U.S.

Despite coming from different countries, all 13 cases had high genetic similarity.

In Friday's update, MOH said they have since completed their investigation, and determined that there was no further transmission beyond them.

In addition, they determined that the other Covid-19 cases who had served SHN at Mandarin Orchard Singapore are not linked to the 13 cases.

All hotel staff tested negative for Covid-19

MOH said all the hotel staff tested under their special testing operations tested negative for Covid-19 infection using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test.

The serological tests of 11 staff were positive however, indicating likely past infections.

These findings indicate that there is no ongoing transmission at Mandarin Orchard Singapore, MOH said.

Considering that the hotel premises have been thoroughly disinfected and there is no longer risk of transmission to hotel guests, the ministry announced that it has approved the re-opening of the hotel (including its restaurant and event spaces) from Jan. 2, 2021 — 14 days after its closure on Dec. 19. 2020.

Other Covid-19 updates on Jan. 1:

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Top image by Martino Tan