Laos records first case of Omicron variant; people told to strictly follow Covid-19 rules

VIENTIANE, Jan 8 (Vientiane Tims/ANN): The National Taskforce for Covid-19 Prevention and Control has warned everyone to continue to strictly comply with Covid prevention measures after finding the first case of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 in Laos.

The taskforce urges everyone to take heed of the rules on Covid control, especially with regard to social distancing.

Director General of the Department of Communicable Disease Control, under the Ministry of Health, and a member of the taskforce, Dr Rattanaxay Phetsouvanh, said the Omicron variant had been detected in a female passenger who arrived in Vientiane on a flight from Malaysia on January 2.

Flight No. AK7552 carried 42 people, who were all tested for Covid-19, with two people from the same family testing positive for the virus, one of whom was shown to be carrying the Omicron variant.

The infected persons had travelled from India through Sri Lanka and transitted in Malaysia before arriving in Laos. They had been fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

The woman concerned is now in quarantine in a location approved by the taskforce.

Meanwhile, staff at the hotel where the other passengers from Flight AK7552 are in quarantine have been instructed to take strict precautions order to prevent the spread of Omicron, ensuring that people remain in their rooms at all times.

Hotel personnel will be required to wear protective clothing, face masks, face shields and gloves, while flight crew, drivers, hotel staff and any others who had contact with the passengers will be required to self-isolate for 14 days.

The Ministry of Health has vowed to do its utmost to protect the public from Covid-19 by accelerating the vaccination programme so that 70 percent of the population is fully vaccinated as soon as possible, including with booster shots.

Dr Rattanaxay advised the public not to panic and to take precautions as advised by the Covid taskforce, while anyone who has had contact with any of the passengers on Flight AK7552 must immediately self-isolate for 14 days. - Vientiane Times/ANN