A highly contagious variant of Covid-19 that authorities have called “very concerning” has made its way to Australia.

A mutant strain of the virus that originated in South Africa and has spread across the UK was identified in a returning traveler who tested positive for COVID-19 in Queensland on December 22.

The woman’s positive test result is a genome sequencing subject identified as 501.V2, considered to be more infectious than the other strains.

The patient was transferred to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital, said Queensland’s chief health officer, Dr Jeanette Young.

The state has recorded two coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, both identified in hotel quarantines and acquired overseas.

Dr Young said it was “too risky” to allow interstate travelers to enter the state because a new strain had been discovered. It came a day after a case of a strain of the virus originating in Britain was recorded in South Australia at a medical hotel.

Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said: “This will be the first positive case of the South African variant in Australia. We have seen other jurisdictions take note of the British variant. But this is the first time South African opinion has been identified in Australia.”

He continued: “The good news about these individuals – is that they were in hotel quarantine at the time they were tested and they have been transferred to hospital.”

Dr Young added that the variant of the virus meant the risk had increased.

“Unfortunately, the risk over the last few months has increased. We are seeing more and more positive cases in people being discharged from abroad and now we have two variants which are quite worrying, developing in the UK and those variants already spreading to other parts of the world, and the South African variant, it increases the risk even more. “

A highly contagious variant of Covid-19 that authorities have called “very concerning” has made its way to Australia.

A mutant strain of the virus that originated in South Africa and has spread across the UK was identified in a returning traveler who tested positive for COVID-19 in Queensland on December 22.

The woman’s positive test result is a genome sequencing subject identified as 501.V2, considered to be more infectious than the other strains.

The patient was transferred to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital, said Queensland’s chief health officer, Dr Jeanette Young.

The state has recorded two coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, both identified in hotel quarantines and acquired overseas.

Dr Young said it was “too risky” to allow interstate travelers to enter the state because a new strain had been discovered. It came a day after a case of a strain of the virus originating in Britain was recorded in South Australia at a medical hotel.

Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said: “This will be the first positive case of the South African variant in Australia. We have seen other jurisdictions take note of the British variant. But this is the first time South African opinion has been identified in Australia.”

He continued: “The good news about these individuals – is that they were in hotel quarantine at the time they were tested and they have been transferred to hospital.”

Dr Young added that the variant of the virus meant the risk had increased.

“Unfortunately, the risk over the last few months has increased. We are seeing more and more positive cases in people being discharged from abroad and now we have two variants which are quite worrying, developing in the UK and those variants already spreading to other parts of the world, and the South African variant, it increases the risk even more. “