HEALTH officials are investigating a second suspected case of the UK “super-Covid” strain in Colorado.
CNN reports today that a previously confirmed case and the newly suspected infection both involve men that work at The Good Samaritan assisted living facility in Simla.
The newly suspected case has come in under 24 hours since Colorado -and the nation’s – confirmed the first case of the UK mutant strain.
County health director Dwayne Smith told CNN that neither men are from Elbert County, and they are isolating outside the county.
Smith also pointed out that there is “no indication at this point” that tthis potential new cluster had broken out of the facility and into the larger community.
The “two individuals were working at the facility in non-clinical roles and were working at the facility due to staffing shortages from a prior Covid-19 outbreak at the facility, so they were not regular staff,” Smith continued.
He added: “The state health department has deployed a rapid response team to the assisted living facility in Simla to test residents and staff.”
The news comes after Governor Jared Polis confirmed on Tuesday that the first case of the variant was found in a man, believed to be in his 20s.
Elbert County is a mainly rural area of rolling plains at the far edge of the Denver metro area that includes a portion of Interstate 70, the state’s main east-west highway.
The Colorado State Laboratory confirmed the virus variant, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was notified.
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is aware of Colorado’s report of the first U.S. case associated with the U.K. variant of Covid-19” CDC spokesperson Belsie González said in an email.
“In addition to the reported case in Colorado, we expect that there will be additional cases that are likely to be detected in the coming days,” said González.
Praising the state’s response to the first case, Jill Hunsaker Ryan of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said: “The fact that Colorado has detected this variant first in the nation is a testament to the sophistication of Colorado’s response and the talent of CDPHE’s scientist and lab operations.”
CNN also quoted Smith as saying The Good Samaritan Society facility – hoe to around 25 residents – had a Covid-19 outbreak during the past two and a half weeks.
At least two people — a 93-year-old man and an 88-year-old woman — died, while a third death is being investigated, he said.
The new strain of Covid discovered in the UK has led to a severe tightening up of lockdown restrictions.
Some part of England – including London – have been placed under “tier 4” stay-at-home orders, with Brits only allowed to leave their homes for “essential reasons”.
Dozens of countries have banned flights from the UK.
The CDC recently confirmed passengers from London arriving in the US will must have had a negative coronavirus test, taken within the previous 72 hours.
