Coronavirus

Omicron Causing 90 Percent of Cases in USVI, Pushing Out Delta

Though it was already known that the Omicron variant of Covid-19 has been in wide circulation in the USVI, Governor Albert Bryan on Friday confirmed the variant's presence in the territory. The highly transmissible strain was first detected late November in South Africa, and it's responsible for the current rapid increase of active infections territory-wide. “Yes, we have confirmed that this surge is being fueled by the highly transmissible Omicron variant,” Governor Bryan said in a news conference Friday. Warning that the increasing numbers would continue to go up before there is a reduction, he said that curbing the spread is the responsibility of all citizens. Health Commissioner Justa Encarnacion said that of the 80 test samples sent away for sequencing, 90 percent tested positive for the Omicron variant, while 10 percent tested positive Delta. The Omicron variant appears to be pushing the deadlier Delta variant out. According to the V.I. Dept. of Health, there were 1,251 active...