A branch of The Orange Tree preschool will be shut down for 10 days after a student tested positive for COVID-19, as ordered by the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) on Monday (9 March).
The student is a 5-year-old child, Case 160, who is a family member of Case 145 – who is linked to the dinner function at SAFRA Jurong and had been tested positive the day before. The 5-year-old last attended preschool on 6 March 2020.
The Choa Chu Kang branch of the preschool will be closed from 1 March to 20 March in light of the confirmed cases, said ECDA in its statement.
The 10-day closure spans the 14 day incubation period from when the student last attended the school. All students and teachers are given a Leave of Absence during this closure. Programmes will resume on 21 March. ECDA said that contact tracing is underway.
During the closure, The Orange Tree (CCK) will conduct a thorough cleaning and disinfection of the premises. It is also closely monitoring its staff and parents on the health of their children. This is implemented on top of previous measures put in place according to ECDA and the Ministry of Health (MOH) guidelines which include restricting visitors, suspending large group and communal activities, health checks, and increased temperature screening on students and staff.
The statement noted, “ECDA is working with the preschool to engage parents on the precautionary measures. In accordance with MOH’s guidelines, staff and children are advised to stay at home during the closure period. Staff and children should avoid going to crowded places and attending social gatherings.”
The Agency is also monitoring the situation closely, and reminds preschools to be “vigilant when conducting health checks.
“This includes keeping the centre environment clean, and frequent washing of hands with soap – especially before eating or handling food, after toilet visits, or when hands are dirtied by respiratory secretions after coughing or sneezing,” it said.
