Ottawa Public Health has advised recent travellers from a handful of countries to self-isolate and seek testing after two cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 were detected in the city over the weekend.
Ottawa medical officer of health Dr. Vera Etches released a statement Sunday saying the local health unit is still working on contact tracing the two confirmed cases of Omicron in travellers who recently returned from Nigeria and are currently self-isolating.
It’s believed these two cases are Canada’s first confirmed instances of Omicron, which was named a variant of concern by the World Health Organization last week.
Out of “an abundance of caution,” OPH issued a self-isolation advisory for travellers who, in the past 14 days, returned from one of the following eight countries:
- Nigeria
- South Africa
- Mozambique
- Botswana
- Zimbabwe
- Lesotho
- Eswatini
- Namibia
The self-isolation requirements apply to both the recent travellers and members of their household.
Travellers should also isolate themselves from other members of their household, if possible.
Individuals under the order should only leave the home to seek a COVID-19 test and should do so, even if asymptomatic or vaccinated.
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The federal government’s own travel advisory contained similar requirements for Canadian citizens to quarantine after visiting seven of the aforementioned countries, with OPH adding Nigeria to its list.
The discovery of the Omicron variant in South Africa has led to a surge of travel advisories and restrictions from the region in recent days as governments race to control the flow of travellers — and, they hope, the virus — into their borders.
Preliminary data surrounding the heavily mutated variant suggests it may be more transmissible and more resistant to vaccination than previous variants. Others have suggested that a low overall vaccination rate in South Africa could be more closely tied to a recent surge of cases in the country.
Etches said in her statement Ottawa could see an increase in cases in the days to come as a result of Omicron, but reminded residents that the ways to prevent transmission of the virus remain the same.
She encouraged residents not yet vaccinated to continue to book first-dose appointments and to maintain public health measures such as physical distancing, mask wearing and staying home while sick.
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