Deaths from Covid-19 in Singapore surged last month amid the current wave of infections.
The city-state reported 54 deaths in April alone, nearly double of the total number recorded in the first quarter, according to latest data from its health ministry.
Almost all of those who died were aged 60 and above. Infections in the city-state had peaked at about 4,000 per day before subsiding earlier this month. There were 20,767 infections recorded in mid-May, down from a high of 28,410 in the last week of March.
The rise in Covid-related deaths comes even as health minister Ong Ye Kung recently said there was no evidence the variants in the city-state have shown any clear growth advantage over the others or are leading to more severe infections.
The country won plaudits during the pandemic for keeping deaths relatively low compared to other nations. It has since pivoted to living with the virus by ditching measures such as compulsory mask-wearing in most places.
On Monday, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that he tested positive for the virus for the first time and will self-isolate until he’s asymptomatic.
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