ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

A new cluster of COVID-19 cases among cleaners at Singapore's Changi Airport has highlighted the dangers being faced by airport cleaners on an everyday basis.

At the same time, the New Zealand authorities are investigating the case of an airport worker who contracted the virus after cleaning a plane.

The aircraft in question had previously carried an infected passenger travelling from Ethiopia via Dubai. "It's a huge challenge to figure out how the cleaner became infected because they were doing all the right things with PPE and being vaccinated," said Otago University epidemiologist Professor Michael Baker.

"The cleaner might have brushed past the passenger on an air bridge or inside the cabin. I'm not aware of any recorded examples of aerosols being left in an environment and then infecting someone after a significant delay, so leaving the plane empty for a period of time before being serviced might just be the change that's needed."

Meanwhile, 16 employees from Ramky Cleantech Services operating at Singapore's Changi Airport tested positive for COVID-19 in May. The majority of the number were cleaners, half of whom were over 60. And not all of them had been vaccinated, according to reports.

The outbreak highlights the need to prioritise vaccination for all front-line workers, according to Professor Teo Yik Ying of the National University of Singapore's Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health.

"Operatives at border checkpoints and all those in outward-facing professions will invariably come into contact with people coming from overseas," he said. "The net should therefore be cast wide enough to cover auxiliary staff members such as canteen operators, cleaners and shuttle bus drivers."