BERLIN (Reuters) – The omicron variant of the coronavirus likely arrived in Germany, Hesse state officials said Saturday after mutations were found in a passenger arriving from South Africa.
“Last night several typical omicron mutations were found in a traveler returning from South Africa,” tweeted Kai Klose, minister of social affairs in Hesse, home of Frankfurt airport, Germany’s largest hub and one of the world’s largest airports. busiest in Europe.
He added that the person was isolated and said that anyone who has traveled to South Africa in the past few weeks should limit their contacts and get tested for Covid-19.
The infected passenger arrived in Germany on Sunday and was fully vaccinated, reported Der Spiegel, citing the Ministry of Social Affairs in Hesse. No one was immediately available at the ministry for comment.
The Frankfurt City Health Authority said it expected the results of a full sequencing on Monday. A routine check last week after a positive test revealed the case, which showed indications of the new variant, he said.
The authority began testing all South African and Namibian travelers on arrival at Frankfurt airport when the new variant became known. No tests had been positive so far.
“Our current routine procedures allow us, together with Frankfurt airport, to quickly implement the necessary measures to minimize the risk of spread,” said Peter Tinnemann, head of the Frankfurt Health Authority.
The new variant came at a time when Germany and many other European countries are struggling with an increase in coronavirus cases.
Health Minister Jens Spahn warned that the situation is worse than ever. “We must reduce all contact, we are in a more serious situation than before”, he said.
Germany reported 67,125 new cases of coronaviruses this Saturday, said the Robert Koch Institute of Infectious Diseases. More than 100,000 people died from Covid-19.
Only 68.3% of Germany’s population of around 83 million people is fully vaccinated, far behind rates in southern European countries such as Portugal, Spain and even France. About 10% of the population received a booster injection.
Germany has said it will classify South Africa as a virus-variant area from Sunday. This is hardly a ban on flights, but it does mean that airlines can only bring Germans from South Africa to Germany and even those already vaccinated must spend 14 days in quarantine.
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