Omicron cases confirmed in Basingstoke district

Three cases of the new Omicron coronavirus variant have been found in the Basingstoke area.

Hampshire County Council has confirmed that the individuals are isolating and key contacts are being traced.

Specialists from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) South East and the county council are now working together to manage the confirmed cases, which includes one at a primary school.

A statement from HCC said “a possible link to foreign travel has been indentified”.

Emma Richards, consultant in health protection at UKHSA South East, said: “Following the cases of the new Omicron variant being confirmed in the Basingstoke district, it is critically important that we do everything we can to help stop its spread while we learn more about how infectious it is, whether it could cause more severe illness and how effective our vaccines are to this variant.

“Health protection experts at the UKHSA have been working with Hampshire County Council’s public health team to investigate where the individuals have been while in the area and targeted PCR testing will be carried out for the contacts they had.”

Simon Bryant, Hampshire County Council’s director of public health added: “We are working closely with the UKHSA, and they will carry out targeted testing at Hatch Warren Junior School, with the support of mobile testing units, next week. As a precaution, all Year 4 pupils and teachers at the school have also been asked to isolate.

“Together with the UKHSA, we continue to do all we can to encourage the public to adopt safe behaviours to prevent further spread.

“Get vaccinated – first dose, second dose, booster. Wear a face covering on public transport, in shops and crowded places. If you have symptoms, then isolate immediately and get a PCR test.

“Ahead of social events, take a lateral flow test, meet outdoors if possible, or if indoors, open a window to let in fresh air. All of these individual actions can make a difference to help slow the spread of infection and help keep each other safe in the run-up to Christmas.”

As of yesterday, Government figures showed there were 246 confirmed cases of the Omicron variant in the UK.