The threat is still lurking and it might just get worse. A number of countries have also reported cases of the VUI-202012/01, the new and more infectious strain of Coronavirus which originated from the UK.
Denmark, Italy, Gibraltar, the Netherlands, and Australia have confirmed cases of a new mutated Coronavirus strain. Meanwhile, France and South Africa have said that it is possible that the new strain of the virus is already transmitting in both countries, but no cases have been officially reported yet.
On Sunday, Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) COVID-19 technical lead, confirmed cases of the new strain in Denmark, Netherlands, and Australia.
The Italian health ministry also revealed the presence of the mutated Coronavirus in the country the following day.
While South Africa and France have detected a strain of the Coronavirus similar to the one from the UK, an official confirmation is awaited as health authorities of both countries have not yet determined whether it is the same strain or another more deadly one.
The new strain of Coronavirus, which is 70% more transmissible than the original one, was first detected in southern England earlier this month and has spread all over the UK since then. Which has caused the country to impose lockdown and stop the virus from spreading.
However, healthcare experts are dreading the worst as they believe the mutated strain has already been transmitted all over the world. It is because, on 2 December, the British government had lifted its national lockdown, allowing citizens to travel internationally from the UK which might have resulted in the spread of the mutated Coronavirus to other countries.
Different countries are discontinuing flights from the UK to stop the transmission of the new virus any further.
It must be kept in mind that we might need to follow strict SOP’s and pre-cautions here in Pakistan as the new strain could be more deadly and cause more damage. Therefore, we all must adhere to the SOP’s and take pre-cautions as we can not be careless because if we do, we might not be able to control it this time.
