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Above: Helen Kennan reports on the new measures coming in to force to try to stop the spread of the new Covid strain
Two further cases of the Omicron Covid-19 variant have been found in London, bringing the total in England to five.
The people who tested positive are not connected to each other and are not linked to the previously confirmed cases.
One case is located in Camden, north London, and the other case is located in Wandsworth, south London. Both have travel links to southern Africa.
The individuals and their households have been told to self-isolate and the UK Health Security Agency is carrying out targeted testing at locations where the positive cases were likely to be infectious.
UKHSA chief executive Dr Jenny Harries said: “It is very likely that we will find more cases over the coming days as we are seeing in other countries globally and as we increase case detection through focused contact tracing.
“That’s why it’s critical that anyone with Covid-19 symptoms isolates and gets a PCR test immediately.”
Wandsworth’s director of public health Shannon Katiyo said: “I want to reassure people in Wandsworth that we have good measures in place for dealing with variants and these are working well.
“The Council will continue to do everything we can to keep residents safe and encourage them to maintain good hand hygiene, wear face coverings when required, get tested, and get vaccinated.”
On Monday a person carrying the Omicron Covid variant was linked to a primary school, a fast food restaurant and a church in an Essex town.
Health officials are trying to trace anyone in Brentwood who may have been in contact with the infected person.
On Sunday it was revealed a person tested positive for the variant after travelling to the UK.
The UK Health Security Agency said the individual is no longer in the UK, but targeted testing is being carried out at locations they visited.
It added that while in the UK, the individual was in Westminster, central London.
Another case was found in Nottingham.
https://www.itv.com/news/london/2021-11-29/two-more-cases-of-the-omicron-covid-19-variant-found-in-london
