FORT BEND COUNTY, TX — The South African COVID-19 variant has been detected in Fort Bend County.
The announcement was made during a press conference that featured many Houston leaders, including Mayor Sylvester Turner.
Dr. S. Wesley Long of Houston Methodist detailed how the hospital system has been working since the start of the pandemic to sequence each positive COVID-19 case to determine the specific strain. On Saturday, February 6 during this sequencing, health officials were notified that the South African COVID-19 variant had been detected.
According to Dr. Jacquelyn Johnson Minter, the HHS Director of Fort Bend County, the person who tested positive for the South African COVID-19 variant resides in Fort Bend County.
The person traveled in December within the United States by way of international airports and returned to the Greater Houston area/ Fort Bend County. A few days later, the person began showing symptoms and was medically evaluated.
Dr. Minter says the person was tested, and the test came back positive for COVID-19. The patient has since recovered.
All members of the household were tested. Those tests all came back negative, according to Dr. Minter.
The person also stayed home from work, meaning there was no workplace exposures.
Dr. Minter emphasized that this event occurred several weeks ago. She encouraged everyone to continue wearing a mask and practicing good hand hygiene.