The government of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas said on Sunday (January 10) that it had detected the first case of the British variant of Covid-19 in an international traveler who arrived in this region on a flight from Mexico City.
"A 56-year-old man who arrived in Matamoros
(northeast)
from Mexico City tested positive for Covid-19,"
the local Secretariat of Health said in a statement.
"The result was positive for the variant of Covid-19 which appeared for the first time in mid-September in the United Kingdom"
, it was added.
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According to the same source, tests carried out on the passengers and the crew of the plane, all proved negative.
In recent days, several countries have imposed travel restrictions with the UK due to the highly contagious nature of the new variant.
Mexico has seen an increase in the number of coronavirus cases as well as hospitalizations in recent weeks.
On Saturday, the country recorded a record number of infections with 16,105 cases in one day.
Mexico has to date more than 1.5 million cases of Covid-19 for 133,204 deaths.