The two people recently traveled abroad, according to the Maryland government Larry Hogan and local health officials on Tuesday.
Two residents of Montgomery County, Maryland have been confirmed to have a new strain of the coronavirus that is believed to be more contagious and was first identified in South Africa.
The two people recently traveled abroad, according to the Maryland government Larry Hogan and local health officials, and the cases are believed to be unrelated to community transmission.
The B. 1,351 coronavirus strain is one of the few mutated strains that have emerged around the world.
These are now the second and third cases of the variant discovered in Maryland.
State health officials and the CDC have confirmed two additional cases of the B. 1,351 (South African) variant in Maryland. The two people, who recently traveled abroad, live in Montgomery County. Contact tracing is underway and the close contacts are isolating.
– Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) February 2, 2021
Last weekend, the state announced its first known case involving a Baltimore resident. That person had not recently traveled abroad.
Montgomery County health officials first pointed to the two possible cases from the South African tribe on Monday, but said they were waiting for final confirmation from the state and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In addition to being more transmissible, the strain first identified in South Africa has not been shown to cause more serious illness or an increased risk of death, Hogan said on Twitter. “Initial evidence suggests that vaccines are likely still protective against the variant,” he said.
The South African variant was first discovered in the US in South Carolina last month. Maryland is only the second state in the US to identify cases related to this particular variant.
Before confirming the positive results, Montgomery County health official Dr. Travis Gayles, to members of the Montgomery County Council that the Maryland Department of Health has increased its capacity to perform sequencing of the viral strains to identify the various coronavirus strains.
Last month, Maryland also announced the first known cases of the new strain of coronavirus first identified in the UK in two residents of Anne Arundel County – one had recently traveled abroad and the other was the traveler’s husband.
More Coronavirus News
Looking for more information? DC, Maryland and Virginia release more data every day. Visit their official sites here: Virginia | Maryland | DC
Like WTOP on Facebook and follow @WTOP on Twitter to discuss this article and others.
Get the latest news and daily headlines in your email inbox by signing up here.
© 2021 WTOP. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users within the European Economic Area.