Second Case of Mutated Coronavirus Reported in California

By Staff, Agencies

A 30-year-old San Diego man became the second recorded case of a COVID-19 mutant strain, after Governor Gavin Newsom announced the patient in a Zoom conversation with top medical expert Anthony Fauci Wednesday.

California became the second US state to detect the variant -- after Colorado -- with a 30-year-old San Diego man testing positive.

“I don’t think Californians should think that this is odd,” Fauci said. “It’s to be expected.”

He said he was “not surprised” the variant is spreading, and warned the US “will be seeing reports from other states.”

The first reported case of the mutated strain in the US was announced on Wednesday. The individual was identified as a male in his 20s serving in the Colorado National Guard.

The UK reported the first instances of the mutation, with countries imposing travel bans on the UK as the number of infected quickly rising.

Experts warn the new strain may be 50-to-70-percent more transmissible, although there appears to be no indication it is more deadly.

South Africa also reported its own new mutation of the virus, leading to countries banning travel from there as well.