ZAMBOANGA CITY Health Officer Dr Dulce Amor Miravite has warned residents to brace themselves for the possible entry of the new Covid-19 variant called Omicron as more countries reported a spike in infections due to the mutation of the novel coronavirus.
The Department of Health (DOH) also confirmed that two
travellers - a Filipino and a Nigerian - who arrived recently in the country
from Nigeria and Japan were both tested positive for the Omicron variant. They
are now under quarantine, but the DOH said it is still tracking down those who
have close contacts with the duo.
Miravite urged residents to strictly follow the public
health protocols even as the active Covid-19 cases in Zamboanga continue to
decline and are expected to further fall below 100.
“Though our cases are going, we should not let our guards down. We should continue our minimum public health standards, especially the wearing of face masks and observe physical distance. It is just a matter of time that we will have this variant eventually in the city if we are complacent,” she said.
Zamboanga City has sent to the DOH hundreds of samples randomly taken travellers for genome sequencing and is still awaiting results of the tests whether it contains the new variant which is more transmissible than the Delta variant.
The World Health Organization said at least 63 countries are now affected by the Omicron variant and could be the dominant variant soon. (Zamboanga Post)
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