Baoshan cases confirmed as Omicron BA.5 sub-variant
INFECTIONS from a quarantine site in north Shanghai have been confirmed as the highly-contagious Omicron BA.5 sub-variant, the city’s center for disease control and prevention said yesterday.
An employee working at a quarantine hotel in suburban Baoshan District and two of her family members have tested positive for the BA.5.2.1 coronavirus strain, which is fueling a new wave of infections globally.
However, no other related infections have been detected so far apart from the three cases, Sun Xiaodong, the CDC deputy director, told the city’s COVID-19 press briefing.
The 32-year-old worker has been held by police for allegedly spreading COVID-19 by breaking pandemic control rules. She went home without permission despite under closed-loop management and banned from leaving the quarantine hotel.
After testing positive, she lied about her whereabouts during the epidemiological survey, causing the further infections of her family members. Her community has been rated as a high-risk area and put under lockdown.
Shanghai saw its first Omicron BA.5 community case in the Pudong New Area in early July, which was tracked back to an imported case.
The more-infectious sublineage BA.5 is characterized by its faster transmission and higher ability to evade immune protection than the previously dominant BA.2 sub-variant
An increasing number of infections have been reported in Baoshan and Yangpu districts recently, mainly hired drivers, delivery and logistics staff as well as wholesalers at local markets, said Sun, adding: “They had wide social contacts and complex movements, posing high risks of transmission once infected.”
A clear epidemiological link has been detected between the key infections at a warehouse in Baoshan and a grocery market in Yangpu, the official added.
A wide range of screening and control measures were launched in the two districts over the weekend to contain the spread of the virus.
Several blocks in Yangpu’s Wujiaochang, Daqiao and Dinghai Road subdistricts have been put under lockdown for a week as medium-risk areas.
Every resident in the two districts are subject to threeday nucleic acid testing from Sunday. Neighborhood compounds and villages are put under lockdown when testing begins and until the results come out.
Employees are also required to show their 24-hour polymerase chain reaction report at workplaces.
The Baoshan government has asked residents to reduce dining at restaurants or gathering in public places. Some eateries, cinemas and venues will be closed temporarily.
Amid the pandemic, Sun reiterated the importance of COVID-19 vaccination to local seniors, who were likely to get infected by their family members, caregivers or friends.
A full two courses of COVID19 vaccines can reduce the risk of severe symptoms to the elderly by 60 percent, while a third booster shot can further lower the risk by 90 percent, he pointed out.
Meanwhile, the city’s health commission stipulated yesterday that everyone entering local tourism spots or hotels must have a 48-hour PCR test report, while their employees must receive daily PCR tests, according to Zhao Dandan, deputy director of the commission.