Millions of Australians’ Easter plans have been thrown into chaos as Western Australia tightens travel restrictions following Queensland’s coronavirus outbreak.
A second man, who is a close contact of the existing Queensland coronavirus cases, was reported in Brisbane on Saturday.
WA Premier Mark McGowan has ordered all travellers from the Sunshine State to be tested and to self-isolate upon arrival in WA with immediate effect on Saturday afternoon.
The rules apply to anyone who has arrived in WA from the Brisbane and Moreton Bay areas since March 20 should isolate until they receive a negative test result.
South Australia has brought in similar rules, with all arrivals from Queensland since March 20 told to get tested and isolate.
WA Premier Mark McGowan has ordered all travellers from Queensland to be tested and to self-isolate upon arrival in WA with immediate effect on Saturday afternoon
Travelers will need to be tested again on day 5 and day 13 of their mandatory 14-day quarantine
They should also get tested again on day five and day 13 of quarantine, but there is no requirement to isolate after both tests unless symptoms develop.
The new rules will be in place until midnight on March 30.
‘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,’ he said in a statement.
‘People need to heed the health advice which has kept us safe. We need to stay the course.’
Mr McGowan said further restrictions could be introduced if necessary.
He said that included a mandatory 14-day quarantine.
The new rules come after a 26-year-old landscaper from Stafford in Brisbane’s north tested positive to the highly contagious UK strain of Covid on Friday.
Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan (pictured) said further restrictions could be introduced if necessary
Some other states have quickly imposed restrictions on travel from Queensland (pictured: people arriving in Brisbane from Sydney in December)
The new case announced on Saturday is a close contact of the landscaper from a different household in Strathpine – with contact tracers currently interviewing the man.
Genomic sequencing shows the 26-year-old’s case is linked to the strain which infected a doctor at the Princess Alexandra Hospital two weeks ago – but officials have no idea how it jumped between the two, who are not known to have ever met.
Before his positive test the man visited venues across Brisbane over a number of days since last Friday March 19.
Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Saturday said health officials were ‘concerned’ about people who were at a busy shopping centre while the 26-year-old was also there.
She repeated urgent calls for anyone who was in any part of Westfield Carindale shopping centre from 12 noon to 2.16pm on Saturday, March 20, to immediately isolate and get tested.
‘The next two days are going to be critical for us,’ Ms Palaszczuk said.
‘We would like to rule out every single possibility here. The sooner that everyone [gets tested] the better we will be.’
Prime Minister Scott Morrison urged states and territories to be balanced and ‘proportionate’ in their response to the outbreak.
The Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk (pictured) said ‘the next two days are going to be critical’ for the Sunshine state
He says the ongoing vaccine rollout has changed ‘risk calculations’ and he’s confident the Queensland government has control of the situation.
‘The economic recovery we’re seeing in Australia now is leading the world, and we want to keep that happening, and we don’t want to prevent that from happening by any possible disproportion or overreaction in response’ Mr Morrison told reporters.
Some other Australian states have already responded to the discovery of the highly contagious strain in Queensland by reintroducing travel restrictions.
New South Wales has shut its border to anyone who has been to the exposure sites listed by Queensland Health and if already in the state they are required to get tested and self-isolate.
The landscaper while infectious had visited venues across Brisbane including a Bunnings in his own suburb of Stafford (pictured)
Tasmania has also closed their border to anyone who has been to the listed exposure sites within 14 days of wanting to travel to the state.
Victoria has designated the Brisbane and Moreton regions as an ‘orange zone’ requiring those wanting to travel to get a permit and a Covid test.
Down in New South Wales, travellers who have been to any of the listed exposure venues must get tested and isolate for 14 days.
