The dangerous Delta strain of Covid-19 has arrived in South America

“The government has identified in Arequipa a case of what is called the Delta variant, which is the Indian variant,” Health Minister Oscar Ugarte said at a press conference.

Ugarte said she is a 78-year-old woman who resides in the Cerro Colorado district of Arequipa, 1,000 km southeast of Lima.

The woman developed symptoms of covid-19 in mid-May and after an examination it was verified to be the Indian variant of the virus, the minister reported. He had been in contact with a family member suspected of covid-19 and had not traveled recently, he added.

Ugarte said in a press conference that it was a 78-year-old which resides in the district of Cerro Colorado, a thousand kilometers southeast of Lima.

The woman developed symptoms in mid-May and, after undergoing an examination, it has been verified to be the Indian variant of the virusinformed the minister. He had been in contact with a family member suspected of Covid-19 and had not traveled recently, he added.

Ugarte said he coordinated with the National Center for Epidemiology, Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) of Minsa for the study of the file and the contacts; as well as to carry out the respective epidemiological headquarters: “A brigade was mobilized to carry out genomic sampling and sequencing of cases associated with Arequipa.

Likewise, neighboring regions are requested (Puno, Moquegua, Tacna, Cusco) random samples for genomic sequencing. Current samples in Lima will also be evaluated.

The Peruvian government reported in February the presence of the new Brazilian variant in three regions, including Lima.

Peru and Brazil, which share 2,800 kilometers of border in the Amazon, suspended flights between the two countries on January 26.

And according to data from the Ministry of Health, Peru is facing the second wave of the pandemic accumulating 187,157 deaths and nearly two million infections, out of a population of 33 million.

In addition, he has the higher death rate from Covid-19 in the world -574 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants-, after the government adjusted the figures on May 31.