Intubations Surge as First Case of Omicron Variant Found in Greece

Greece recorded a total of 6,260 cases of Covid-19 on Thursday, while 6,196 were recorded in the country yesterday, Wednesday.

The record for the highest number of coronavirus cases recorded in one day in Greece was broken on November 9, when 8,623 cases of Covid-19 were diagnosed.

In the past day, a total of 341,227 coronavirus tests have been administered, including both PCR and rapid tests, bringing the positivity rate in Greece to 1.83%. This is a  slight increase over yesterday’s rate, which was 1.76%.

The average age of those who have tested positive for the virus in Greece is still 38, and the average age of those who have died with the virus is still 78, showing no change over the past several days.

A total of 89 people with the virus passed away in the country on Thursday alone; this is 14 more than the 75 people who died with Covid-19 in Greece on Wednesday.

Just 13 of Thursday’s cases were identified during routine Covid-19 testing of travelers at the country’s borders.

Currently, there are 704 patients with the coronavirus on ventilators in Greece, which is 14 more than the 690 patients undergoing the invasive treatment in the country on Wednesday.

Omicron Covid variant found in Greece

The first case of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus in Greece was confirmed on Thursday by the Minister of Health, Thanos Plevris.

He said that a Greek citizen who recently arrived from South Africa was diagnosed as having the variant on the Greek island of Crete.

The Minister assured the public that all quarantine protocols and tracking protocols have been observed.

The president of the Hellenic National Public Health Organization (EODY), Theoklis Zaoutis, said that the person arrived in Greece from South Africa on the morning of November 26. He noted that the first rapid test had proved negative.

However, on November 29 the traveler tested positive for the coronavirus and he then underwent a PCR test.

“It turned out that this was a case of the Omicron mutation. All contacts of the case were tracked and their tests were negative for the coronavirus. They remain under surveillance,” Zaoutis said.

1,791 coronavirus cases in Attica, 983 in Thessaloniki

Of the 6,260 new coronavirus cases recorded in Greece in the past 24 hours, 1,791 were located in Attica, home to the Greek capital city of Athens.

A total of 478 cases of Covid-19 were identified in central Athens on Thursday.

In Thessaloniki, the second-largest city in Greece, 983 cases of the virus were identified today.

Over 900,000 cases of the Coronavirus recorded in Greece

Since the beginning of the pandemic, a total of 951,351 cases of Covid-19 have been recorded in the country, including all those who have recovered from the virus.

Of the 704 patients intubated currently, 81.1% are over the age of 70 or suffer from preexisting conditions. Their average age is 64.

The majority of those who are on ventilators in Greece, or 79.26%, are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Additionally, a total of 3,533 patients have been discharged from ICUs around the country since the beginning of the pandemic.

The 89 new deaths recorded on Thursday bring the total number of coronavirus-related fatalities in the country to 18,325.