The first cases of the disease with the South African strain of COVID-19 were recorded in Switzerland. This was reported on Sunday, December 27, at the Federal Office of Public Health.
The report states that one of the two infected with the new strain is now in France. The second is located in the canton of Schwyz. The Swiss Federal Office of Public Health is in contact with the authorities of Schwyz and France.
“As part of its study, the Swiss Higher Technical School of Zurich sequenced about 500 samples from people with positive results (for COVID-19) … The South African variant was found in two samples, while the British variant was not found,” the report said.
The department recalled that earlier in the cantons of Zurich and Graubünden, the first cases of infection with the British strain of COVID-19 were detected, and two residents of Great Britain gave positive results. According to the authorities, a third case of infection with this strain was later identified in Liechtenstein.
Earlier that day, two cases of a new strain of coronavirus previously identified in the UK were reported in Canada. The disease was identified in a couple from Durham who, as you know, did not travel or come into contact with carriers of the virus. Both are currently in self-isolation.
A new mutated variant of the coronavirus was discovered in the UK on December 14. It is 56% more infectious than the original, which in the future will lead to an increase in the number of patients in hospitals, said scientists from the Center for Mathematical Modeling of Infectious Diseases at the London School. More than 35 countries have suspended flights to the UK due to the discovery of a new strain of COVID-19.
The South African Ministry of Health also reported earlier that geneticists have identified a new coronavirus mutation for the country, named 501.V2.