First cases in Solomons confirmed as Delta variant

Health authorities in Solomon Islands say the variant of Covid-19 they appear to be dealing with in the country is Delta.

A senior advisor to the country's health ministry, Dr Yogesh Choudri, told RNZ Pacific all five samples sent to Australia early on in the outbreak had been confirmed as the Delta variant.

As of Monday afternoon 3391 cases of the virus had been confirmed in the country with over 400 identified last Friday alone.

As of Sunday 33 people had died of the virus at the National Referral Hospital but health authorities say the real number is most likely higher as this does not account for people dying in their own homes.

"So the first samples that we sent we identified Delta variant in the five samples that we have sent. More samples have been sent on Friday, last Friday and we are awaiting for the report. So in likelihood we have a Delta variant but it could be, it could just turn out to be a mix of variants," Choudri said