Health officials in Canada have confirmed the identification of the BA.2.86 variant of the Omicron coronavirus in the country.
The new variant is highly mutated and was found in an individual in British Columbia who had not travelled outside the region, as stated by health authorities on Tuesday.
The person affected by the BA.2.86 virus is not currently in hospital, and the discovery does not alter the level of risk to the people in British Columbia.
Dr Bonnie Henry, the leading healthcare expert in the province, along with Health Minister Adrian Dix, issued a joint statement stressing that the presence of the BA.2.86 variant was expected and is in line with the virus’s ongoing adaptations amid its global spread.
