Video / NZ HeraldHealth officials have revealed the first known case of the Omicron sub-variant BA.5 arriving in New Zealand. In South Africa, where the infected traveller came from, BA.5 and sub-variant BA.4 have been blamed for a new surge in cases. There were 5647 new community cases of Covid-19 and three Covid-related deaths reported in New Zealand today. Ghebreyesus also emphasised that it's not yet known whether the new sub-variants will cause more severe disease than previous Omicron sub-variants. Concerning developmentThe BA.5 variant is believed to have emerged in January, University of Auckland microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles wrote ina piece for The Spinoff last week.

Source: New Zealand Herald May 08, 2022 10:53 UTC