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Academia Sinica looks into lab misstep
How the former Academia Sinica lab worker got infected with Covid-19 remains a question.
The research institute says today that it's looking into reports that the female worker handled mice with the Alpha and Delta variant.
Health Minister Chen Shi-chung confirmed over the weekend that the worker contracted the Delta variant, whose genome sequencing match the variant used in the lab.
Chen also said that investigators found traces of Delta on the desk and door knobs of the lab, so he's fairly sure that the worker contracted coronavirus there.
Speaking to lawmakers today, Academia Sinica President Liao Jun-zhi says three workers, including the woman, went into the lab on 24 November and only one of them followed standard procedures of wearing and taking off their shoes and protective clothing.
Liao also says that based on the surveillance video, there was no supervisor on-site, while the woman infected with Covid-19 was still under training.
He adds that the woman was bitten twice by the mice in the lab last month, but those incidents were not reported according to the rules.
Health minister Chen Shih-chung says 259 contacts of a domestic coronavirus case confirmed last Thursday, have tested negative for the disease.
