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The coronavirus has now reached the last continent on Earth, with the first cases identified in Antarctica.
The Chilean army announced that 36 people linked to General Bernardo O’Higgins Riquelme’s base on the planet’s south pole had tested positive for COVID-19.
The base is at the western tip of Antarctica, near the southern tip of South America.
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The possible effects on wildlife of the coronavirus are ‘largely unknown’
Of the 36 infected, 26 are reported to be members of the Chilean military, while the others are believed to be maintenance workers.
The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) has said that “the risks and implications of virus transmission to Antarctic wildlife are largely unknown.”
The most isolated continent in the world had managed to avoid the pandemic due to a series of circumstances.
The small number of people and regulated travel plans have made it easier to quarantine and track those traveling to the South Pole.
And there has also been a timing aspect: the outbreak coincided with the end of the summer season.
For much of the pandemic, travel to and from Antarctica has been minimal, as the continent was in constant darkness.
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But transmission was always a risk, with a BAS post saying: “Given the diversity of transmission routes and vectors, preventing the introduction of the virus will be difficult, even with strict quarantine procedures.”
The number of people in Antarctica varies greatly between seasons, with around 1,000 during winter and around 5,000 in summer.
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