It is present on French territory. A day after the French government announced the tightening of the conditions of access to its territory for all travelers, three cases of infection with the Omicron variant were discovered in France. Franceinfo takes stock of what we know about the presence of this highly contagious variant on French territory.
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Two confirmed cases in Seine-et-Marne and Vendée
The first case of the Omicron variant in France was discovered Wednesday, December 1 in Ile-de-France, according to a press release from the Regional Health Agency (ARS) published on Thursday. This is a traveler who lives in Seine-et-Marne, tested positive for Covid-19 when he got off the plane that brought him back from Nigeria on November 25. Sequencing of the sample revealed that it carried the variant identified for the first time in South Africa. This man, aged “50 to 60 years”, did not present symptoms at the time of the test and was not vaccinated, specifies the ARS of Ile-de-France.
Two other people from his close entourage are also concerned, but the Omicron variant has not yet been identified. His wife, who accompanied him on this trip, also tested positive for Covid-19. For now, the ARS is awaiting the results of the sequencing to find out whether it has been infected with the Omicron variant. Finally, a third person living under the same roof performed a test on Thursday to find out if they had contracted the virus and if they were a carrier of the variant.
None of these three people are vaccinated. They were placed in solitary confinement and the Regional Health Agency affirms “continue the health investigation to identify, test and, if necessary, isolate other possible risk contacts”.
Another case was revealed Thursday in Vendée, announced the Biogroup laboratory. “Biogroup analyzes each suspect positive RT-PCR test by sequencing to highlight this new Omicron variant”, To specified the laboratory, reports France 3 Pays de la Loire. The Pays de la Loire regional health agency has confirmed this case. This is a woman who returned from a trip to South Africa on November 28, when she presented a positive test. Vaccinated with two doses in June, she showed no symptoms. She was put in solitary confinement, as well as her entourage, adds the regional site of France 3.
A positive traveler in the Haut-Rhin
The Grand Est Regional Health Agency announced at midday on Thursday that a new positive case for the Omicron variant had been identified in the Haut-Rhin. The person concerned is a woman “showing a complete vaccination schedule”, she explains in a press release. “This is a 42 year old woman who received her second dose in August 2021”, reveals François Joppin, biologist at the Biogroup laboratory (which carried out the sequencing), contacted by franceinfo.
This patient tested positive on November 27, after returning from a trip to South Africa. “It’s aafter this test and because she was returning from South Africa that the sequencing was requested by the health authorities “, specifies the doctor. The forties is therefore “remained in solitary confinement at her home since her arrival on the territory given the result” of this screening, notes the ARS. “Few of the risky contacts have been identified. These people have tested negative and have been placed in solitary confinement.”, further specifies the Regional Health Agency of the Grand Est.
A first case discovered in Reunion
Earlier in the week, the Omicron variant had already been detected on Tuesday on French territory, on the island of Reunion, reports La 1ère. He is a 53-year-old man, returning from Mauritius, after a trip to Mozambique and a stopover in South Africa, the country where the Omicron variant was first identified. This traveler had performed tests upon departure and arrival, both negative.
It was then that he felt the first symptoms of Covid-19 and that he tested positive. It was placed “immediately to isolation at his home”, specifies the ARS of Reunion in a press release. Contacted by La 1ère, the French public health agency specifies that this man had a complete vaccination schedule (two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine). The 50-year-old was among a group of six people who tested positive for the virus on their return from travel. But he is the only one to have tested positive for the Omicron variant.
As a precaution, France has suspended all flights from seven countries – South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini (formerly called Swaziland), Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe – since November 26. Government spokesman Gabriel Attal announced on Wednesday that flights would resume on Saturday, but with “an extremely strict and drastic framework”.
Eight suspected cases identified
The Ministry of Health said, Sunday, November 28, in a statement, that eight suspected cases were being sequenced. Sont considered as “possible cases of contamination with the Omicron variant in people having traveled to southern Africa in the last 14 days and having a positive test result with a negative screening for the mutations found in the other variants of concern (Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta ) “.
According to the Ministry of Health, “Reinforced measures for identifying and isolating possible cases and their contact persons at risk have been implemented”, And this “even before obtaining of the sequencing results “. It is not yet known whether the three cases confirmed in Reunion, Seine-et-Marne and Haut-Rhin are among the eight suspected cases identified by the authorities. Contacted by franceinfo, the Ministry of Health did not respond to our requests.