Barely a week has elapsed since scientists in Botswana and South Africa alerted the world to a fast-spreading SARS-CoV-2 variant known as Omicron.
It might take scientists weeks to paint a more complete picture of Omicron, and to gain an understanding of its transmissibility and severity, as well as its potential to evade vaccines and cause reinfections. The threat of Omicron has prompted some rich countries, such as the United Kingdom, to broaden the roll out of vaccine booster doses. But it’s not yet clear how effective these doses will be against this new variant.
With regards to omicron’s effect on Asia and especially Hong Kong, the city of Hong Kong reported its third omicron infection in a 37-year-old traveler from Nigeria, on top of two cases found last week. The omicron variant spread among two fully vaccinated travelers across the hallway of a Hong Kong quarantine hotel, underscoring why the highly mutated coronavirus strain is unnerving health authorities. CCTV footage showed neither person left their room nor had any contact, leaving airborne transmission when respective doors were opened for food collection or Covid testing the most probable mode of spread.
Since then Hong Kong tightened Rules in Places with traces of Omicron, the detection of three imported cases of Covid-19 caused by the omicron variant in Hong Kong won’t affect the city’s reopening plans with mainland China. The reassurance came as a relief to many people who have been waiting for the border to reopen for business and family visits.The government will tighten rules for airplane boarding and quarantine stays for people traveling from places affected by omicron, officials said at the briefing. They will all be deemed high-risk, meaning only Hong Kong residents can return. They will have to undergo more frequent tests and quarantine at government facilities for seven days before starting two weeks of isolation in a hotel.
