Queensland travellers to WA told to get tested, quarantine under tighter border rules

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Queensland travellers to WA told to get tested, quarantine under tighter border rules

By Marta Pascual Juanola
Updated

People travelling to Western Australia from Queensland will be required to get tested for COVID-19 within 48 hours and quarantine for 14 days – or until they return a negative test – under tighter border controls effective immediately.

The extended border restrictions come after Queensland recorded one case of coronavirus in the community linked to a Brisbane landscaper who tested positive for the virus on Thursday.

Premier Mark McGowan

Premier Mark McGowanCredit: Peter de Kruijff

On Friday, Health Minister Roger Cook announced travellers who had entered WA since March 20 and had visited nine potential exposure sites in Brisbane would need to isolate for 14 days and get tested for COVID-19.

“We’re closely watching the situation and will get up-to-date health advice to ensure we are doing everything we need to do to keep WA safe,” Mr Cook said.

The new rules rolled out on Saturday extend the quarantine and test requirements to all arrivals from Queensland, regardless of whether they have or not been to the exposure sites and will be in place until at least midnight on Tuesday.

Premier Mark McGowan said the new restrictions were based on the latest health advice from Chief Health Officer Dr Andrew Robertson and the government was ready “to do what is necessary to help WA remain free from community transmission” even if it meant closing the border.

“Thanks to our border controls and strong health response, Western Australia has been free from community transmission for more than 11 months – we want to keep it that way,” he said.

“I understand this new measure will be frustrating for some, but it is crucial we all do our bit to keep our friends, family and our community safe.”

During a press conference on Saturday afternoon, Health Minister Roger Cook said the government had assembled two health teams to test the 1000 daily arrivals from Queensland at Perth Airport but travellers would also be given the option to get tested at COVID clinics at the city’s major hospitals.

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“We’ve got a number of people who have come into the state from Queensland. I know of only one case that had been to any of those [exposure sites] but obviously, we need to wait for more details to come through,” he said.

“If you’re travelling to Queensland, you are taking a risk and we just simply want you to be aware of those risks and make sure that you take the necessary actions to protect yourself and your family.”

Mr Cook said WA would receive about 80000 doses of the first batch of the domestically-produced AstraZeneca vaccine from the Commonwealth next week which would allow for a ramp-up of vaccination efforts.

The new case of community transmission in Queensland is a friend of the 26-year-old landscaper who tested positive late on Thursday but who had been infectious in the community since March 19.

His was one of six new cases recorded on Saturday, however, the other five were all international travellers in hotel quarantine.

The case followed genomic testing that linked the 26-year-old man’s infection to the cluster from the PA Hospital doctor a fortnight ago.

It had been thought that cluster had been contained, but Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said there was still at least one missing link between that cluster and the landscaper.

“There is probably, given timing, an intermediary between the first healthcare worker [at the PA Hospital] and this gentleman, we believe,” Dr Young said.

“There could have been two [intermediaries] – those are the things we’re going back and looking at. We’ve re-checked all of those up to nearly 900 contacts, and all of those tested negative, so we’re just looking at where else there has been transmission.”

Dr Young conceded they may not find the link, however, she said the focus was on containing the current new cases.

In the 24 hours to Saturday, Queensland authorities tested 6881people, with long lines forming at many testing facilities in Brisbane on Friday evening.

Queensland currently has 71 active cases of coronavirus, most of which came from overseas arrivals, especially Papua New Guinea.

with Stuart Layt

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