FHI’s Line Vold: Norwegian municipalities have reported many cases of suspected omicron infection
In recent days, several municipalities have reported suspected cases of the omicron coronavirus variant.
“There are many reports of suspected cases that are handled by the municipalities in collaboration with the outbreak group at the FHI, and there are many microbiological laboratories around the country that are carrying out screening and sequencing,” FHI department director Line Vold told the newspaper Dagbladet.
On Saturday, two new cases of the virus were confirmed in Bærum, according to municipal chief medical officer Frantz Leonard Nilsen.
“We probably have about seven to eight cases of suspected omicron infection. Only two have been confirmed so far. Most of the suspected cases are related to the Christmas dinner party at Aker Brygge, but we also have some people that have been in South Africa or on flights from South Africa,” he said.
19 cases confirmed
The FHI has confirmed 19 cases of the variant so far in Norway. But the real number may be far higher. In Oslo, more than 90 people have been infected with COVID-19 after a Christmas dinner party at Aker Brygge, and at least 13 people have now received confirmation of omicron infection.
In addition, there are two confirmed cases in Øygarden Municipality, and four omicron-infected travelers to Gardermoen from South Africa have also been detected.
But from Monday, December 6, the National Institute of Public Health (FHI) aims to report confirmed omicron cases on a daily basis.
“We are constantly working on updating risk assessments, collecting information from other countries and other environments, and updating scenarios,” Vold told NTB on Saturday.
Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews
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