First Case of UK-Origin COVID-19 Variant Infection Reported in Singapore

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Cases of infection with a new variant of the coronavirus (COVID-19) spreading in the United Kingdom have been confirmed for the first time in Singapore.

According to the daily Straits Times on the 24th, the Singapore Ministry of Health announced that a girl who studied in the UK was confirmed to be infected with the UK-origin COVID-19 variant.

The Ministry of Health explained that the girl had been in the UK since August this year and returned on the 6th, after which she was under self-quarantine at a designated facility.

The Ministry of Health conducted tests on those who were confirmed COVID-19 positive after entering from Europe, as the B117 variant of the coronavirus was spreading in the UK.

As a result, among 31 Europe-arriving individuals confirmed positive for COVID-19 over the past month since the 17th of last month, the girl's infection was confirmed.

Eleven other confirmed cases also showed preliminary positive reactions to the B117 variant, raising the possibility of an increase in B117 variant infections.

However, the Ministry of Health claimed that since the girl immediately began self-quarantine upon arrival and close contacts were also isolated, there is currently no evidence that the B117 variant is spreading in Singapore.

The COVID-19 variant is known to have high transmissibility, putting countries around the world on high alert.

In this regard, the Singapore government has decided to ban the entry and transit of long-term visa holders or short-term visitors who have visited the UK within the past 14 days, starting from today, as a preventive measure to stop the spread of the variant.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.