NSW Health has confirmed at least three students at a western Sydney school have been infected with the Omicron COVID-19 variant of concern,with another ten coronavirus cases at the school under investigation.
The department said in a media release tonight that genomic sequencing had confirmed that two cases of COVID-19 at Regents Park Christian School were the Omicron variant,in addition to an earlier case reported this morning.
Urgent genomic testing is under way on a further 10 cases of coronavirus at the school to determine if they also have the Omicron variant.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard said earlier today that the first case of Omicron confirmed at the school had not travelled to southern Africa and was not linked to people who had travelled overseas in recent weeks,meaning it may be the first confirmed case of transmission of the variant on “NSW soil”.
NSW Health has also confirmed that the parents of a confirmed case of Omicron that was first reported yesterday,a child who is too young to get vaccinated,had also tested positive to this variant.
NSW Health said the parents and their child “arrived on flight QR908 from Doha to Sydney on 23 November. The family is isolating in the Special Health Accommodation.
“These travellers have not been in southern Africa and NSW Health is concerned transmission may have occurred on this flight.[The parents] are both fully vaccinated.”
It brings the total number of confirmed cases of the Omicron variant in NSW to 13,three of which are at Regents Park Christian School.
Earlier today,Mr Hazzard urged the community to maintain “perspective” over the latest cases.
“I think transmission is always a concern,but we also need to just keep it in perspective at the moment,that worldwide there’s not clarity around whether or not this particular variant is going to cause us anywhere near the problems that the earlier variants caused,” he said.
“We’re not seeing people suddenly being rushed to hospital. What we’re seeing is people who are either asymptomatic or have very mild symptoms,generally”.
NSW Health advised that people who attended Sydney Indoor Climbing Gym at 5/850 Woodville Road,Villawood on Saturday,November 27,between 9am and 4.30pm were a close contact of a confirmed Omicron case and must immediately get tested for COVID-19 and isolate.
It also advised of a change to the time it previously announced a confirmed case of the variant visited Centrelink and Medicare at 56-64 Archer Street in Chatswood on Wednesday,November 24. The new time is between 2.30pm and 4pm.
Anyone who attended that venue is a casual contact who must immediately get tested and isolate until a negative result is received. People should continue to monitor for symptoms and get tested again if they arise.