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Former singer-actress Foyce Le Xuan may be known more for her freakishly good <a href="https://www.facebook.com/foyce.lexuan”>
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Foyce Le Xuan, Jack Neo accuser, somehow predicting Covid-19 numbers quite accurately
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From cosplayer to prop maker: He can turn your imagination into reality
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Why I Do What I Do is an original AsiaOne series where we showcase people with uncommon professions and what it takes to get there.
“A lot of people consider me crazy.”
After all, 32-year-old Shannon Sng left behind a comfortable office job to sweat it out (quite literally, in some sense) as a professional prop maker.
The founder of Edentechsg now spends the majority of his day cooped up in his studio, tinkering away with anything from cosplay props to large-scale puppets, set dressings to giant parade floats. Heck, there was even a life-sized baby Yoda sitting on his desk during our visit — yes, also made in-house.
Though he hadn’t had any prior experience in professional prop making, Shannon took to the job like a duck to water.
Growing up, Shannon had a deep love for tokusatsu, a Japanese term used to refer to a type of live-action film or drama that makes heavy use of special effects. Think Masked Riders, Power Rangers, Ultraman and even Godzilla.
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Coronavirus cases cross 5,000 mark with 623 new patients
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The Ministry of Health has preliminary confirmed 623 new coronavirus cases in Singapore today (April 17), a drop from yesterday’s daily record of 728. Most of the new cases are foreign workers living in the dormitories.
Further details will be provided later tonight.
A total of 5,050 cases have been reported in Singapore so far, with 683 cases discharged and 10 deaths.
For the latest updates on the coronavirus, visit here.
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McDonald's Singapore removes takeaway service from April 18 to May 4
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There’ll be no option to take away your McDonald’s meals from tomorrow (April 18) till the end of the circuit breaker period on May 4.
The fast-food chain announced on Friday (April 17) that it would be putting a stop to the takeaway service at all outlets across the island “to reduce interaction” between customers and employees as an enhanced safety measure.
Starting tomorrow, customers will only be able to order from McDonald’s 24-hour delivery service via GrabFood and McDelivery, or from their vehicles at their drive-thru restaurants.
Said Kenneth Chan, Managing Director of McDonald’s Singapore: “We have made a key decision to stop takeaways in our restaurants as a proactive move to keep our customers and employees safe – over and above all other precautionary measures implemented from the start.”
He added that halting the takeaway service was decided to “reduce interaction between our customers and employees during this circuit breaker period, and also enable more of our senior employees to stay at home over the next two weeks”.
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Some foreign workers to be housed in ActiveSG halls, says Sport Singapore
SINGAPORE: Some foreign workers will be housed in sports facilities that have been temporarily closed as part of the “circuit breaker” measures to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
This will address the “urgent need” to provide alternative living areas for healthy foreign workers in essential services, said Sport Singapore (SportSG) on Friday (Apr 17).
“The Government has been working closely with employers to adapt to the rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation, and to meet the needs of workers affected by the situation,” said SportSG.
READ: Two weeks and a 70-fold increase – a look into the COVID-19 outbreak in Singapore’s foreign worker dormitories
Starting from Friday, workers without COVID-19 symptoms will be progressively housed at ActiveSG sport halls at Pasir Ris, Jurong West, Clementi and Hougang.
“Strict protocols will be in place to manage the workers’ entry and presence at these sport centres,” said the agency.
It added: “Together with our fellow Government agencies, we will ensure the safety of the foreign workers, our staff and residents in the surrounding neighbourhoods.”
INTERACTIVE: All the COVID-19 clusters at dorms and construction sites
The number of coronavirus infections among foreign workers living in dormitories has shot up in recent days, with more than 2,600 cases out of a total of 4,427 cases in Singapore as of Thursday.
The number of dormitories with COVID-19 cases has grown to more than 25, while 12 dormitories have been declared isolation zones.
BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the coronavirus outbreak and its developments
Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram
LTA awards S$640 million contract for construction of train testing centre
SINGAPORE: GS Engineering has been awarded a contract to design and construct the flagship Integrated Train Testing Centre (ITTC) at the former Raffles Country Club site, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said on Friday (Apr 17).
The $639.5 million contract for the ITTC was warded to GS Engineering, a South Korea based construction company that has previously designed and constructed MRT stations and depots in Singapore.
It is expected to be fully operational by end-2024.
GS Engineering is currently constructing the East Coast integrated four-in-one depot.
The company has also previously built the Downtown Line’s Gali Batu depot, Fort Canning station, Tampines East station, as well as the Thomson-East Coast Line’s Woodlands station.
The ITTC, which is the first of its kind in Southeast Asia, will be equipped to test rail systems around the clock without disrupting passenger services.
“This is more efficient and frees up limited engineering hours on the existing lines for other activities such as maintenance and renewal works.
“When completed, the ITTC will be the cornerstone of Singapore’s strategy to sustain rail reliability and deepen core rail engineering capabilities,” LTA said.
Occupying about 50ha, the ITTC is located at the former Raffles Country Club site. Its design is modelled after similar testing centres in Germany, South Korea and Japan.
The ITTC will house an operations control centre, testing equipment and 11km of test tracks to support endurance, performance integration and high speed testing for new trains and supporting systems.
It is also equipped with a rolling stock workshop, stabling tracks and maintenance tracks to support major refurbishment of existing trains.
An artist impression of the Integrated Train Testing Centre at the former Raffles Country Club Site, which is expected to be fully operational by 2024. (Photo: Facebook/Land Transport Authority)
Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan said in a Facebook post on Friday that “ensuring rail capability is a continuous endeavour”.
“We have stabilised our MRT operation but we must not be complacent,” he added.
The ITTC will serve as a hub for LTA and the local rail industry to deepen their capability in systems integration, operations and maintenance, LTA said.
“The local rail industry will be able to evaluate new railway infrastructure, develop proofs-of-concept, as well as conduct research and development into railway technologies, using the ITTC as a testing ground,” they added.
It would also speed up diagnoses and rectification of faults, as more troubleshooting can now be done locally.
Rail workers will also stand to benefit from the first-hand understanding of the intricacies of new rail systems before they are deployed.
The ITTC will begin operations in phases, with the first phase to open by end-2022 to receive new trains and systems for Circle Line phase 6.
HDB and URA extends free parking to 20 mins till May 31
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With the implementation of the circuit breaker on April 7, Singapore has seen quieter streets and emptier trains as locals stay home to help curb the spread of the coronavirus.
As most of us are working from home, we’ve turned to online shopping for our daily needs. As such, delivery services have seen an uptick during this period.
Now, motorists will get an extended grace period when they park at car parks with electronic parking system under the Housing & Development Board (HDB) and Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) until May 31.
This means that they will not be charged parking fees for the first 20 minutes there.
In anticipation of the increased volume of deliveries and to assist delivery riders, the grace period has been extended from the original 10 minutes, HDB and URA said.
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'Stop yelping like a spoilt kid,' Ho Ching tells Singaporeans upset over new FairPrice service fee
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People have been roasting NTUC FairPrice for its new $3.99 service fee — and Ho Ching is not here for it.
The chief executive officer of Temasek Holdings chided Singaporeans who were complaining about the supermarket chain’s fees in a candid Facebook post today (April 17), telling them to “stop yelping like a spoilt kid”.
Ho, who is married to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, also suggested that those who wanted their groceries delivered for free should “step up and volunteer to do delivery for the rest of us”.
It came after NTUC FairPrice announced that it would impose a $3.99 service fee on all online orders from 8pm on Thursday (April 16).
This is on top of its new tiered delivery charges: $5 for orders below $59, $3 for orders between $59 and $79, and free for all orders $79 and above.
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Coronavirus: Experts say big jump in infections is stretching the healthcare system
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SINGAPORE – Singapore will have to change the way it handles Covid-19 patients, as the recent surge in infections is stretching the capacity of the healthcare system, said interviewed experts on Thursday (April 16).
Associate Professor Hsu Liyang of the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health said more foreign workers will continue testing positive in the coming days, as those who had contracted it before being re-housed according to safe distancing measures start falling sick.
Prof Hsu, who is both an infectious diseases expert and an epidemiologist, said the spread of Covid-19 in dormitories “must be slowed or else there is a high chance that our hospitals will be overwhelmed whatever we do”.
His colleague and vice-dean of research at the school, Associate Professor Alex Cook, added: “We could easily see 10,000 to 20,000 cases by the end of the month if we do not put in place fast and effective measures ensuring actual safe distancing among the workers currently in the dorms.”
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SEAB extends GCE-Level coursework deadlines, reschedules selected exams amid circuit breaker
SINGAPORE: To ensure that students are fairly assessed during the “circuit breaker” period of full home-based learning, adjustments will be made to GCE-Level coursework submissions and examination dates for A-Level H3 subjects, said the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) on Friday (Apr 17).
The board said it recognises that the full home-based learning period, which took effect on Apr 8 and will last until May 4, will have certain implications on students taking GCE-Level coursework and GCE A-Level H3 subjects taught by autonomous universities.
There are 34 GCE N(T)-Level, N(A)-Level, O-Level and A-Level subjects that have a coursework component as part of the national examination framework.
READ: “We’re ready to help” – University students rallying volunteers to give free tuition
READ: Circuit breaker blues – How to help children cope with changes to routine
“Most of the coursework cannot be done at home due to the need for face-to-face teacher supervision or the use of school facilities and equipment – for instance, the use of studios for music, food laboratories for food and nutrition, studios for design and technology, as well as sports equipment and facilities for exercise and sports science,” said SEAB.
Hence, SEAB said it would apply three methods to ensure assessment remains fair and accurate, including extending the national submission deadline by two weeks where possible. “The extension will give students more time to complete the coursework and help reduce the anxiety of students and teachers,” said SEAB.
A total of 12 GCE-Level subjects will have their coursework submission deadlines extended by two weeks.
For 10 GCE-Level subjects, the coursework submission deadlines cannot be extended as they are very close to school preliminary examinations or year-end national examinations.
The deadlines for the remaining 12 GCE A-Level subjects, for which the coursework components can be carried out independently through research and independent study, will remain.
“In the event that full HBL is extended and that coursework national submission deadlines cannot be further extended without overlapping with school preliminary examinations, students should submit the coursework that they have so far completed,” said SEAB, adding that it has established processes to ensure these students are fairly assessed.
The board said it would also consider adjusting task requirements, for example by cutting the number of assessment tasks. It would also accept evidence of learning from the schools and apply “special consideration” in grading candidates in these coursework subjects.
READ: MOE will allow teachers to “progressively resume” use of Zoom, police reports filed on recent breaches
RESCHEDULING OF GCE A-LEVEL H3 EXAMS
The national examinations for GCE A-Level H3 subjects that are taught by the local autonomous universities will be rescheduled to take place only after the end of the full home-based learning period, and decentralised at the students’ respective junior colleges and Millennia Institute.
The schools will implement the necessary precautionary measures to ensure the safety and well-being of all students and examination personnel, said SEAB.
The board said it will continue to work closely with schools to provide guidance to students on examination matters. It also reiterated that all national examinations, including the mid-year GCE O- and A-Level Mother Tongue Language examinations in June, will proceed as scheduled as these are “essential milestones for students in their educational journey”.
“If any changes are required, given the fluidity of the current COVID-19 situation, we will certainly provide timely updates,” it said.
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