13 out of the 61 air passengers in Netherlands have Omicron

At least 13 out of the 61 air passengers who arrived in Netherlands from South Africa have the “highly transmissible” Omicron variant.

Netherlands is suffering from a record number of COVID cases, and the 61 positives who arrived on two flights were sent to a nearby hotel for isolation.

More tests were conducted on the COVID positives to determine if they carry the Omicron variant or not. Latest test results have confirmed the worst of fears.

The Dutch have enforced a partial lockdown for the next three weeks in a bid to contain the spread of COVID.

The country is now fearing that Omicron is spreading in the shadows. Netherlands is now likely to conduct tests on the average public to see whether Omicron is already spreading.

Since the new variant was first discovered in South Africa, countries have been quick to enforce travel bans on Southern Africa. The variant has now been discovered in countries like Hong Kong, Belgium, Israel, UK, Germany and Italy.

The World may enforce strict lockdowns if cases suddenly rise.