It is now a global pandemic in every sense of the word.
The plague of the coronavirus has hit all seven continents after COVID-19 cases were first recorded in Antarctica on Monday.
The virus reportedly infected 36 people on a Chilean research base. That number included 26 members of the Chilean military, along with 10 maintenance workers, Newsweek reported.
The infected, they were stationed with General Bernardo O’Higgins Riquelme, tested “positive for COVID-19” after “administering a PCR test,” according to a statement from the Chilean military to local news outlet 24 Horas. At least some of the infected showed symptoms before the positive tests.
Fortunately, all 36 have since been evacuated to the city of Punta Arenas in Chile, where they are reportedly isolated and in stable condition, according to the Guardian.
“Thanks to the timely preventive action … it was possible to fire such personnel,” the Chilean military said in a statement to local media. They have since replaced GBOR’s crew with new personnel who had been quarantined and tested negative for the disease prior to deployment.
Unfortunately, the station staff were not the only ones infected. Three workers on a ship supporting South Pole Station also tested positive for COVID-19 after returning from their voyage.
Despite its status as the most isolated continent on Earth, Antarctica remains particularly susceptible to a coronavirus outbreak on its 40 year-round bases, the Guardian reported.
“A highly contagious new virus with significant mortality and morbidity in the extreme and austere environment of Antarctica with limited sophistication in medical care and public health responses is high risk with potentially catastrophic consequences,” said a Council of Managers of National document. Antarctic Programs.