Basseterre, St. Kitts, July 29, 2021 (SKNIS): Health authorities in St. Kitts and Nevis successfully managed the second wave of the COVID-19 virus which, was later identified as the Lambda variant. There is no evidence of a new variant being in the federation. However, officials are being extremely vigilant in monitoring the situation on the ground.
“We have sent off other samples to CARPHA (the Caribbean Public Health Agency) for genomic sequencing and so when we get those results back we will see whether or not we have other variants here in the population circulating,” said Medical Chief of Staff at the Joseph N. France General Hospital, Dr. Cameron Wilkinson.
His comments at the National Emergency Operations Centre COVID-19 Briefing on Wednesday (July 28, 2021) demonstrate the due diligence of local health officials.
This is particularly important as several Caribbean countries have confirmed the Delta, Alpha and Gamma variants of the virus within their borders.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta variants as “variants of concern.” It reports that the Alpha variant is present in 182 countries, Delta is in 132, Beta in 131, and Gamma in 81.
According to NPR.org, the Lambda variant has been identified in 28 countries as of July 22, 2021.