Various new strains, including B.1.1.7, have been identified among the COVID19 viruses currently found in Sri Lanka, the Health Promotion Bureau said today. "A special feature of viral epidemics is the change in its appearance over time. Even a change in a single protein in a virus can cause a significant change in its behavior. Such changes may accelerate the spread of the virus. It can also increase the severity of the disease caused by a viral infection," they revealed. This can cause the disease to spread faster than usual and cause more severe symptoms. They also pointed out that the risk of Covid exists in three situations: being in overcrowded places, standing in close proximity to other persons and being in enclosed spaces. "Although not frequently discussed, being in enclosed spaces is another very powerful factor influencing the spread of COVID. If you have one of these three factors in place, you are more likely to develop COVID than anywhere else. If more than one of these factors is present in a place, the spread of COVID in such places can occur even more rapidly," they stated. They requested the public that if the need arises to visit such a place, pne can reduce the risk to some extent by minimizing the time spent there. Especially in times of high risk, places where one or more of these factors are present should be avoided as much as possible.