The Hawaii Department of Health recently issued a press release stating that additional new variants of the COVID-19 virus have made it to Hawaii.
Private sector laboratories commissioned by the Department of Health’s State Laboratories Division found nine samples of the L452R variant, and samples that may suggest the presence of the B1.1 variant of the coronavirus.
The B1.1 variant, which has not previously been detected in Hawaii, is said to be highly contagious.
Four out of the nine individuals carrying the L452R variant of the virus had a history of travel to or from the U.S. mainland (three California, one Utah). Three of the samples were collected in late December, indicating the variant has been present in the state for at least five to six weeks.
The L452R variant is the virus is currently considered “under investigation” by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).