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Gov. Kathy Hochul announced five confirmed cases of the omicron variant of COVID-19 in New York state on Thursday.

The new variant was first observed in South Africa and has been identified in other countries, such as Canada, Australia, Japan and Israel. The U.S. observed its first omicron case in California on Wednesday. The patient, who was fully vaccinated for COVID-19, returned to the U.S. from South Africa on Nov. 22.

All five newly confirmed cases in New York were from the New York City metropolitan area. Among them, one was discovered in Suffolk County, Long Island, while others were discovered in New York City. Two were in Queens, one in Brooklyn and one in Manhattan, Hochul announced in a press briefing Thursday evening.

“This is not cause for alarm,” Hochul said in a tweet on Thursday. “We knew this variant was coming and we have the tools to stop the spread.”