Today in Norway: A roundup of the latest news on Wednesday 

4,045 new Covid cases registered in Norway

On Tuesday, 4,045 coronavirus cases were detected. This is 2,552 more registered infections than last Tuesday. Over the past week, an average of 3,003 infections have been reported per day. The same average a week ago was 1,997 cases. 

READ ALSO: Norway’s new national Covid-19 measures

In Oslo, 762 infections have been recorded. This is 167 more than the same day last week, but 76 fewer than the day before. 

Total number of Covid-19 cases in Norway. Source: Norwegian Institute of Public Health.

Suspected Omicron cases in Norway

There have been three suspected Omicron cases in Ullensaker. However, they have yet to be confirmed by sequencing. 

“The most important thing now is that those who are infected and their close contacts follow the rules of isolation and quarantine. We expect to have the first results of the tests ready by the end of tomorrow. We report back to the municipal doctor when the results are available,” Line Vold, department director at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, said in a statement.

The three tested positive at Gardermoen airport after travelling from Southern African via stopovers. The travellers who returned the positive tests are currently in quarantine hotels. 

Oslo moves to the highest level of preparedness

Oslo municipality has raised its level of preparedness to the highest level, level three. 

“This means that we again set central crisis management to ensure effective information sharing and coordination of response,” Oslo’s executive mayor, Raymond Johansen, explained at a press conference. 

Johansen also added that the municipality was mulling over enforcing the use of facemasks, which is currently only recommended in Norway’s capital. 

He also added that he would do everything he could to avoid lockdowns and the shutdown of hospitality. 

Vaccine certificate available for use today

From this afternoon, a new version of the Covid-19 certificate should become available, and municipalities going through a spike of infection will be able to use it, Norway’s health minister Ingvild Kjerkol announced. 

The return of the domestic certificate, which was previously scrapped when all measures were lifted at the end of September, comes weeks after it was first announced. 

The reasons for the delays were to pass regulations allowing local authorities to implement the measures and to get all the technical details into place.