Belgian research outpost in Antarctica hit by COVID-19 outbreak

The Princess Elisabeth Polar Station in Antartica suffered a COVID outbreak among the many researchers stationed there.
Worldwide Polar Basis

The present surge in COVID-19 instances has reached Antarctica, affecting a completely vaccinated crew at a Belgian scientific analysis station, based on stories.

At the least 16 of the 25 staff on the Princess Elisabeth Polar Station have caught the lethal bug since Dec. 14, the BBC reported.

However the instances have been delicate.

“The state of affairs isn’t dramatic,” Joseph Cheek, a undertaking supervisor for the Worldwide Polar Basis, which operates the station, instructed the BBC.

“Whereas it has been an inconvenience to need to quarantine sure members of the employees who caught the virus, it hasn’t considerably affected our work on the station general,” he instructed the outlet.

“All residents of the station had been provided the chance to go away on a scheduled flight on Jan. 12. Nonetheless, all of them expressed their want to keep and proceed their work,” Cheek added.

Workers at Princess Elisabeth Polar Station, the place there are two docs, should be vaccinated and examined for the virus upon arrival, the BBC stated.

The station introduced that new arrivals have been suspended in the meanwhile.

SMA

New arrivals on the station have been suspended till the virus is eradicated.

The outbreak isn’t the primary to happen in Antarctica.

Final yr, a number of Chilean army staff based mostly at Bernardo O’Higgins analysis station had been contaminated after sailors on a provide ship examined optimistic for the bug, based on the report.