Toronto reported Friday that the first three cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant, bringing the total number of known cases in Ontario to 11 cases.
In a press release, the Toronto Department of Public Health (TPH) said two out of three residents who tested positive for the worrisome variant (B.1.1.529) had returned from the trip. to Nigeria while the other went to Switzerland.
“These are the first cases of an Omicron variant of interest confirmed by whole-genome sequencing, reported in Toronto,” TPH said in a statement Friday evening.
“TPH’s contact and case management team is currently monitoring these cases and is providing guidance to identify close contacts regarding isolation and testing.”
Dr Anna Banerji, a pediatric infectious disease specialist, said she was concerned but not surprised that one of the cases involved a traveler who had not returned from one of the affected South African countries. by federal government travel restrictions.
“The whole world is interconnected. Someone flying from South Africa can go anywhere in the world,” Banerji said.
“I think it’s fallacious to think that we control Omicron by just blocking travel from South Africa unless the whole world stops all travel. You can’t lock it down. Already, it’s here.”
Banerji said while there are still many unknowns about Omicron, she is worried about how quickly this variant will spread, especially in South Africa.
“We need to watch it over and over again, continue to be vigilant and careful, especially as the holiday season approaches,” she said.
Infectious diseases epidemiologist Maria Sundaram said there was likely community transmission in the province.
“We’re lucky that South African scientists were able to identify it and warn the world. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t here on our doorstep,” she said.
“In terms of how transmissible it is, early data shows it’s very contagious. In fact, it’s competing with the Delta variant in South Africa right now, which is scary. We really don’t. there’s a lot of data on the potential severity of the disease. So that’s one thing that I’m continuing to look at.”
A total of five new cases of the Omicron variant were reported on Friday, with two other cases also in the Greater Toronto Area.
York-area Public Health said the first case of this variant was identified in a child under the age of 12 from Vaughan. Meanwhile, Durham officials confirmed the second case of Omicron in the area.
Dr Kieran Moore, Ontario’s chief medical officer, earlier this week, said earlier this week it was only a matter of time before more cases were detected in the province.
CONTACT OF COVID-19 AT DOWNTOWN TORONTO RESTAURANT
Toronto’s first cases were confirmed the same day TPH informed the public that a COVID-19 exposure at a downtown restaurant was linked to a suspected case of the Omicron variant.
TPH said an employee of Piccolo Caffe E Vino, located on John Street near Adelaide Street, who tested positive for COVID-19, was at the restaurant between 9pm and 2pm the morning of November 26 and 27.
Officials say the case is being investigated as a suspected variant of Omicron due to the individual’s recent travel history to South Africa.
Public health officials are requiring anyone who has been at the restaurant during that time frame to be tested for COVID-19 immediately and monitored for symptoms for 10 days after they last visited.
“There is no risk to anyone entering the facility beyond these days and hours,” officials said in a statement released Friday.
“TPH has traced all known close contacts and asked these individuals to self-isolate for 10 days and get tested.”
TPH added that the restaurant did not keep customer communication logs with dine-in patrons, as required by the Ontario Reopening Act and is currently under investigation.
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