A positive case was found on 14 December among those who came seven days ago. The passenger was immediately isolated, but tests conducted showed that two other people had also contracted the virus. The three men were evacuated on 23 December. But since then this virus has been circulating.
Presently, 25 people are present at the station and 5 are on expedition. Two-thirds have been infected but no serious symptoms have been declared so far. Two emergency doctors are on site and the station has all the necessary equipment for treatment and PCR testing.
Alain Hubert, the station’s executive operator and responsible for the safety measures, said that everyone in attendance received two doses of the vaccine, with one also benefiting from a booster.
The Strategic Council of the Polar Secretariat decided on Monday to keep staff at the site but prohibited any new entry into the station before the cluster disappeared and until at least January 12, the expected arrival date of the two new missions. , The research session will also be shortened.
According to a virologist consulted by the Polar Secretariat, the chances are high that the infection at the station is due to the Omicron variant, given that it represents 99% of cases in South Africa, the country of the last stop before Antarctica. . ,
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