FILE PHOTO: Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire. INQUIRER
MANILA, Philippines — The two travelers from Burkina Faso and Egypt who recently arrived in the Philippines and tested positive for COVID-19 were not infected with the Omicron variant, the Department of Health (DOH) said Thursday.
The two travelers were among those who arrived in the country from November 15-29 and tested positive for the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19. The DOH earlier announced that the traveler from South Africa who also arrived during the said period has tested positive for the B.1.1.203 virus variant, which is not a variant of concern or interest.
“Yung tatlo na sinabi natin from Burkina Faso, Egypt, and South Africa, ‘yung Burkina Faso, positive siya sa Delta. ‘Yung sa Egypt, walang lineage na assigned. Ibig sabihin wala po tayong variant na nakita,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire disclosed in an online media briefing.
(Regarding the travelers from Burkina Faso, Egypt, and South Africa, the one who arrived from Burkina Faso was positive for the Delta variant. No lineage was found from the traveler from Egypt, which means we did not find any variant from him.)
READ: 3 travelers from S. Africa, Burkina Faso, Egypt test positive for COVID-19
READ: South Africa traveler tests positive for different COVID-19 variant — DOH
The DOH earlier sent samples taken from the three travelers for genome sequencing to determine if they are positive for the coronavirus Omicron variant.
But while the Omicron was not detected from the said travelers, it was later detected from a returning Filipino who arrived from Japan on December 1 and a Nigerian national who arrived from Nigeria on November 30.
READ: DOH detects Omicron variant in 2 travelers from Japan, Nigeria
The DOH said seven of the eight close contacts of the two cases from their flights have tested negative for COVID-19 during their quarantine upon arrival. The test result of the other close contact is still being verified.