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2.14am EST02:14
UK junior health minister: ‘I’d rather over-react than under-react’ to Omicron variant
Updated
at 2.22am EST
12.28am EST00:28
Despite reports of milder symptoms Omicron should not be underestimated, experts say.
Anecdotal reports out of South Africa suggest the new variant may cause only mild illness. But although previous variants of the coronavirus have been associated with different symptoms and severity, it would be dangerous to assume that Omicron is a viral pussy cat.
At a briefing convened by South Africa’s Department of Health on Monday, Unben Pillay, a GP practising in Midrand on the outskirts of Johannesburg, said that while “it is still early days” the cases he was seeing were typically mild: “We are seeing patients present with dry cough, fever, night sweats and a lot of body pains. Vaccinated people tend to do much better.”
Meanwhile, Pretoria-based GP Dr Angelique Coetzee said many of the patients she’d seen were presenting with unusual symptoms, particularly severe tiredness, and none were reporting loss of taste or smell.
Read the full story here.
11.56pm EST23:56
China finds sudden outbreak in Russian border city
China is battling a sudden cluster of cases in a Russian border city, after three workers in the Inner Mongolia city of Manzhouli, were found to have Covid-19 during routine testing, prompting mass tests of the 300,000 city residents.
The national health commission reported 21 new locally transmitted cases on Monday, 20 of which were all in Manzhouli.
The mass detection has happened suddenly. Local media said two asymptomatic cases – which China classifies separately to confirmed cases – were detected on 27 November.
Contact tracing and further testing had identified another 27 by Monday. Several cargo yards have been closed as a result, and flights, trains, coaches, taxis and city buses have been suspended.
Schools have moved online, and hospitals have been limited to emergency care only.
Authorities have also imposed controls on city exits, temporarily closed markets and cultural, sports, leisure and entertainment establishments, and put limits on weddings, religious gatherings, and restaurants.
No confirmed cases had been reported from Inner Mongolia in more than two weeks, since the detection of four cases on 13 November, in Alxa League more than 2,300km to the south-west. Neighbouring province Heilongjiang this week suspended some rail freight imports to prevent potential transmission, local authorities said.
Additional reporting by Xiaoqian Zhu