A Long Island resident has the first known case of the South African coronavirus variant in the state of New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Sunday.
The mutant version of COVID-19 was detected in a resident of Nassau County, the governor said in a press release.
The announcement came a week after a Connecticut resident hospitalized in New York City was diagnosed with the variant.
The strain, originally identified in South Africa, was first discovered in the United States last month – and scientists believe it can spread more easily than other variants of the virus.
His arrival at Empire State means that “it is more important than ever for New Yorkers to be vigilant, wear masks, wash their hands and remain socially distant,” said Cuomo.
“We are in a race now – between our ability to vaccinate and those variants that are actively trying to proliferate – and we will only win that race if we remain smart and disciplined,” he said.
Nassau County executive Laura Curran also urged residents to continue to take precautions.
“We do not believe that the South African variant is more deadly, but it can be more contagious,” Curran said in a statement. “The best answer is to continue with the tried and tested precautions: wear masks, avoid social gatherings, distance yourself, stay at home and get tested when you’re sick.”
Meanwhile, the state’s latest COVID-19 figures continued to show a downward trend in hospitalizations and deaths after a peak in the holiday season.
Less than 5,800 patients were hospitalized with the virus on Saturday, down more than 800 from the previous week.
Authorities recorded 75 deaths from COVID-19 on Saturday, the first time since December 16 that the daily death toll was less than 100.
Cuomo also announced that the state’s COVID-19 positivity rate was 2.99 percent, dropping below 3 percent for the first time since November 23.
“We continue to see a reduction in positivity and hospitalizations across the state, which is good news, and this progress is allowing us to reopen the valve of our economy even more,” said Cuomo.
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