Vermont confirms first case of UK virus variant in Chittenden County

Vermont recorded its first case of Covid-19 variant B.1.1.7, a more transmissible mutation of the virus that originated in the United Kingdom, Health Department officials said on Monday.

Authorities first detected the variant in Burlington wastewater samples almost a month ago. The case reported on Monday was detected in a sample taken from a resident of Chittenden County, the department said in a statement.

Health commissioner Mark Levine emphasized that the arrival of the variant was a concern, but not a surprise.

“This and other variants have been circulating in the United States for some time now, so we hoped to find evidence of this here,” said Levine. “In fact, we are the last state in New England where it was detected.”

The variant put health officials on high alert, as it is more contagious than the strain of the dominant virus in Vermont. But Levine asked Vermonters to remain confident in the state’s efforts to vaccinate people, as the vaccines in use have been shown to effectively protect them from variant B.1.1.7.

“We are moving to vaccinate people as soon as possible and I ask everyone who qualifies for each phase to be vaccinated,” said Levine. “But now that we know that the variant is here, it is increasingly important that everyone follow our guidance to avoid transmission: wear your mask, keep a distance of almost two meters from each other and absolutely avoid crowded places.”

Burlington has been monitoring wastewater for viral activity since last August and announced in January that it would start testing wastewater for strain B.1.1.7. The city first detected traces of the strain in wastewater samples on February 11.

Forty-nine states and territories have already reported cases of B.1.1.7. variant, the health department said Monday. Meanwhile, scientists are working to determine the level of protection provided by vaccines against strains that have emerged in South Africa and Brazil.

Although vaccines provide equal protection against B.1.1.7, the Pfizer vaccine has been shown to offer less protection against B.1.351, the strain first detected in South Africa – which was not detected in Vermont. Scientists are working to develop new ways to effectively vaccinate people against these variants.

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