The samples of a health worker who tested positive for COVID-19 after returning from the United Kingdom recently have been sent for genome sequencing test to ascertain the presence of the Omicron variant of the virus.
The 46-year-old man arrived in Kozhikode on November 21 and visited four districts in the State. He tested positive on November 26. The samples have been sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune.
Two persons in the U.K. were found to have been infected with the new COVID-19 variant on November 27. They had travelled to South Africa from where the Omicron variant was first reported.
The Kozhikode District Medical Office said the travel and contact details of the U.K. returnee were handed over to medical authorities. He had travelled by train to Ernakulam district and Kayamkulam in Alappuzha district.
His mother has also tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and here samples were collected. They are under observation at their house while contact tracing is going on.
The district authorities have stepped up efforts to meet eventualities arising out of the emerging Omicron threat. A special ward has been arranged at the Government District Hospital at the beach.
