Thailand’s Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) announced Wednesday that a second and third case of COVID-19 Omicron infection have been detected in Thailand in two unvaccinated Thai women, who returned to the country from Nigeria on November 24th.
Both entered quarantine upon arrival and tested positive for COVID-19, just two days before the World Health Organisation formally announced the emergence of Omicron. Their infections came ahead of Thailand’s first known case of the Omicron variant, a 35-year-old American businessman arriving from Spain and then Dubai on November 29th , as announced by the CCSA on Monday.
Both received treatment in a “hospitel” until December 5th, when the authorities tested specimens to confirm the variant of the virus is Omicron. The two women are being kept under observation for an additional seven days and have not been discharged.
The patients, 46 and 36 years of age, are translators working for a Christian Church. They were among three representatives from Thailand to join an assembly in Lagos, Nigeria between November 13th and 23rd. The 36-year-old had a COVID infection once before in July.
One other member of the group, also a Thai national, travelled to Sweden after the trip to Lagos and subsequently tested positive for coronavirus as well.
The RT-PCR tests taken on November 21st, prior to their flight to Thailand, produced negative results.
The American man has not developed any serious symptoms. 16 out of 17 hotel staff found in contact with him in Thailand tested negative for the coronavirus.
