Omicron is now Colorado’s only new variant

DJ Summers

3 years ago

The South African doctor who alerted officials of the possibility of a new variant, later named omicron, said the "unusual but mild" symptoms were what caught her attention. The variant on Monday was detected in South Texas in Cameron County on the Mexican border.(Photo: Getty Images)

DENVER (KDVR) — There is no delta; only omicron.

In Colorado, it is now the dominant strain. In the week of Dec. 26, 100% of the state’s COVID variants identified in new cases were omicron.

The speed at which omicron spread is new. The delta variant was first identified in Colorado in April 2021 but wasn’t more than 90% of the state’s variants until July. It has taken four weeks for the state’s new strain to switch from entirely delta to entirely omicron.

The new variant first identified in November has caused record-breaking numbers of new cases worldwide. France recorded Europe’s highest-ever number of COVID cases on Thursday, while the United States has recorded its highest-ever numbers in the last week.

Colorado itself recorded its highest-ever levels of both cases and hospital admissions in the last week.