Right before the Netherlands banned air travel from Southern Africa, they tested all 600 people from the last two flights leaving the country, 61 people immediately tested positive

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Europe

61 travellers from South Africa in Netherlands positive for COVID-19 -authorities

By Toby Sterling

 

AMSTERDAM, Nov 26 (Reuters) - Dutch health authorities said that 61 people who arrived in Amsterdam on two flights from South Africa on Friday tested positive for COVID-19, and they were conducting further testing early Saturday to see if any of the infections are with the recently discovered Omicron coronavirus variant.

Around 600 passengers arrived at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport on the two KLM flights on Friday and then faced hours of delays and testing due to concerns over the new virus variant.

The Dutch health ministry said early Saturday 61 tests had come back positive.

"Travelers with a positive test result will be placed in isolation at a hotel at or near Schiphol," health authorities said in a statement.

"Of the positive test results, we are researching as quickly as possible whether they are the new variant of concern, now named 'Omicron'."

The Dutch government banned all air travel from southern Africa early on Friday. Health Minister Hugo de Jonge determined that passengers already en route to the Netherlands would have to undergo testing and quarantine upon arrival.

Passengers on the two KLM flights, from Cape Town and Johannesburg, said they were kept waiting on the tarmac for hours.

 

If it is indeed that new Omicron strain, that thing is no joke. In regards of spread of infection.

I don't know anything about what kind of death rate this strain is capable of producing.

 

We're talking about 600 people who got on a plane on Friday, and were testing overnight, and the initial tests report 10% of them have the virus early Saturday, that number could increase with repeat testing 24-72 hours later.

And we also don't know, out of the 600 who boarded the two planes, how many of them were already infected prior to boarding.

I hope we find out more about this strain, quickly.

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The South African doctor who spotted and initially discovered the Omicron strain has said that, so far, the symptoms for this particular strain are mild.

 

So that is good news, if this is going to be wildly contagious, that it at least is way milder than the original and Delta strains.

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At this point I think humanity has run it's course and hopefully the earth gets hit by a world killer meteorite.