Britain closes borders to Danes – NRK Norway – Summary of news from different parts of the country

The UK has introduced a ban on all visitors to Denmark. The British fear a mutated coronavirus that will spread to mink on Danish fur farms.

British citizens or residents will be able to return to the UK from Denmark, but will then need to be quarantined with all members of their household for 14 days.

Everyone who has been to Denmark in the last two weeks will be contacted to make sure they are in quarantine.

Even those who have only been in transit in Denmark must isolate themselves with all household members when they come to the UK.

Consider the same in Norway

– Yes, we are considering it now over the weekend, says health director Bjørn Guldvog.

He says that the Norwegian Board of Health is in dialogue with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority and the National Institute of Public Health on how they should handle the mink infection in Denmark so that it does not reach Norway.

– What measures are you considering?

– We are considering whether the quarantine rules we have now are sufficient or whether we should have the same rules as the UK.

Today, the ten-day quarantine applies to the arrival in Norway of all countries. Additionally, the requirement for a negative corona test certificate is taken 72 hours prior to arrival.

Ongoing assessments are carried out on Norwegian mink farms. A regimen with additional infection control and periodic testing of those working on the farms has been introduced.

– What do the Norwegian authorities know about the mutated virus in Denmark?

– We don’t know much more than what has appeared in the press. It is not known if it has other properties and if it will affect the effect of a vaccine. So there are reasons to be very careful, says Guldvog.

Mutated

The coronavirus was first transmitted from humans to mink on Danish mink farms. In mink, the virus has mutated. Then the virus mutation has spread again from mink to humans.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen says the mutated virus may mean that a coronary vaccine is not working properly. She says the situation is serious.

– We risk that the effect of a vaccine will not materialize. It can have devastating negative consequences for the entire world. A mutated virus can spread to other countries.

More than 200 people in Denmark are said to have been infected by the mutated mink virus. Denmark has closed seven municipalities to prevent the spread.

So far there is no evidence that any of the mutations in the coronavirus pose a major threat to humans. The World Health Organization says it is too early to conclude.

The largest mink farm in the world

The Danes are now in the process of killing every mink in the country. It includes between 15 and 17 million animals.

Corona infection has been detected in more than 200 Danish mink farms and 67 have already started killing.

Denmark is the largest in the world for crop makeup. The country has between 1,100 and 1,200 mink farms. By comparison, Norway has around 40 mink farms. There is no suspicion of corona infection among the Norwegian mink.