Sri Lankan health authorities recently announced on Friday that two highly contagious Covid 19 variants B.1.1.7 and B.1.617.2 have been detected.
Sri Lanka Detects Alpha and Delta Variant in Third Covid 19 Wave
Chandima Jeewandara, Director of the Allergy, Immunity and Cell Biology Unit at the Sri Jayewardenepura University said that the B.1.1.7 variant, also known as Alpha, has been reported in capital Colombo and nine other areas in the country.
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Meanwhile, the B.1.617.2 or the Delta variant, has been detected in a quarantine facility in Waskaduwa in the outskirts of the capital, she added.Sri Lanka is presently facing a third wave of the pandemic.
Eight Day Old Baby Dies In Sri Lanka from Covid 19
As per the latest reports, the coronavirus death toll in Sri Lanka has crossed the 2,000-mark as the country on Thursday recorded its highest single-day fatalities with 101 deaths since the onset of the pandemic.
Reports suggest that the death toll from the Covid 19 has reached 2,011 in Sri Lanka, health officials said on Friday.
The 101 deaths reported on Thursday were the highest number of deaths confirmed in a day since the onset of the pandemic in the country in March 2020.
Health officials said that an eight-day-old baby from Pussellawa town in Kandy District, who died on Wednesday, was the country’s youngest Covid victim. Most of the patients who died due to Covid-19 were between 65 -75 years of age.
Sri Lanka witness an increase in the number of Covid 19 cases and deaths since April. The reason behind the same is partly because of shopping and last month’s traditional festivities.
The current surge in the Covid 19 cases has led to lockdown across the country since May. The restrictions are due to be lifted by June 14.
