1st Case Of New Coronavirus Variant Found In CT Resident: Lamont

CONNECTICUT — State officials announced that the B.1.351 variant of the COVID-19 virus, the so-called “South African” variant, has been detected in a Connecticut patient who is currently hospitalized out-of-state with the virus.

The individual’s condition is improving, officials said. This is the first known case of the B.1.351 variant in a Connecticut resident.

The Connecticut patient is a Fairfield County resident between the ages of 60-70 who has not travelled recently. The B.1.351 variant was reported this weekend by public health officials in New York. CT Department of Public Health and local health officials are coordinating with officials in New York; contact tracing has been completed.

Like the B.1.1.7 variant, the B.1.351 variant is more contagious than the original COVID-19 virus, health officials said. This strain of the virus was first detected in South Africa in October 2020 and was first discovered in the United States at the end of January 2021.

With 42 confirmed cases of the B.1.1.7 variant and now the discovery of the B.1.351 variant in Connecticut, public health officials reiterated the need for continued vigilance including wearing masks, social distancing, avoiding gatherings with individuals who do not reside in your household and isolating when sick.

“Seeing another variant in our state reminds us yet again the severity of this pandemic and reinforces the need for us to take all of the necessary precautions which have proven to be successful over the past year," said Gov. Ned Lamont. "The virus does not recognize state boundaries, and it certainly does not recognize international borders, which means the responsibility is on all of us to do what we can on a personal basis to mitigate the spread."

Acting DPH Commissioner Dr. Deidre Gifford urged residents to follow new CDC guidance issued last week calling for double masking in certain circumstances. In some instances, a cloth mask along with a surgical mask may be the best approach according to the CDC, in order to prevent droplets from escaping or entering through gaps in masks, Gifford said.

New coronavirus numbers

Since Friday, Connecticut has reported 2,905 new coronavirus cases bringing the total to 270,242 cases since the pandemic began in March 2020. A total of 66 new deaths were reported over the weekend bringing the total number of deaths to 7,447 since last March. And the number of hospitalizations continues to decline, this time by another 56 beds to 618 currently.

The infection rate for the weekend was 2.98 percent.