Summary
- Premier Gladys Berejiklian has moved to address complacency towards coronavirus in Sydney, telling businesses they face significant penalties and harsher rules if restaurants and cafes continue to flout COVID-19 protocols.
- A new mother caught up in a coronavirus scare says delays and conflicting advice from Victoria's contact-tracing system left her terrified she could have unknowingly exposed maternity ward staff, parents and newborn children to COVID-19.
- Reopening the border to NSW on November 1 is "still not out of the question", but Queensland's deputy premier says a review by the state's Chief Health Officer would have the final say.
- The World Health Organisation has reported a record one-day increase in global coronavirus cases on Thursday, with infections rising by 338,779 in 24 hours.
Watch live: Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian
We've got two premiers up at 11am today: Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian. I'll post both livestreams right here:
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews:
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian:
Latest updates
Qld cancer patient will now be allowed to quarantine at home
By Lucy Stone
A man who underwent a brain cancer operation in NSW will now be permitted to quarantine at his home in Brisbane, instead of at a medical hotel, after Queensland's Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young organised an assessment with a senior doctor overnight.
Gary Ralph and his wife Wendy Child travelled to Sydney for the operation, but when they returned, Queensland Health denied him an exemption to isolate at home and instead required the couple to stay in a medi-hotel.
Their plight drew heavy criticism from politicians, as have other cases in Queensland's strict border requirements.
"I asked one of the senior doctors at the [Princess Alexandra] hospital to go and assess him last night. That occurred and based on that advice this morning, I've said he can quarantine at home," Dr Young said.
"There are a few conditions on that, I've asked for an urgent COVID test to be done on him and his partner this morning."
If the tests are negative, an ambulance will convey Mr Ralph and Mrs Child home, she said. Dr Young said she was reluctant to allow him to quarantine at home until she was fully satisfied he would be safe and comfortable at home.
"I didn't want to discharge him from our care to a situation that was unsafe for him," she said.
Deputy Premier Steven Miles said it had been "a pretty swift process" to get the exemption approved and he had not been contacted by the Prime Minister or Wayne Swan.
Contact tracers were pivoting to 'preventative approach': Victorian CHO
By Rachael Dexter
Victoria's contact-tracing team is sitting at about 2000 staff, Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said.
"They have been re-purposed in lots of ways. There is a much bigger focus with that workforce and community engagement and testing," he said.
"So they are much more focused on those active outbreaks and less on the routine, obviously, calls that come in for the close contacts."
He said while he thought 2000 staff was "more than enough" for the work they were currently doing, it was "absolutely clear that we need to pivot to a significant preventative approach" such as third-ring isolation.
Professor Sutton said there could be 30 per cent more cases of COVID-19 cases circulating in the community than those being picked up via testing.
"It probably becomes a smaller number on a day when we have got great testing," he said.
"It absolutely tells you that anyone who is symptomatic needs to come forward for testing, because that is what will get us to zero cases, zero community transmission."
Too early to make a decision on border reopening: Queensland CHO
By Lucy Stone
Queensland's Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young says there has been one additional case which she believes may be a false positive on a ship off the coast of Weipa, which saw several crew members evacuated last week.
The crew member who returned the positive test is feeling well and is isolating in his cabin, she said.
Dr Young said it was also good to see NSW had confirmed links for seven out of eight cases yesterday, and could trace all the new cases today. However she said it was too early to make a decision on the border reopening date set for November 1.
Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young.
"We just need to wait a bit longer before we decide if there's any need to change that planned opening to NSW, which at this point in time is planned for November 1," she said.
"We'll continue to monitor what's happening in NSW. They do have a concern, which they're well aware of and well on top of, at the Liverpool Hospital and also at a private clinic. Those five cases they've announced today, I understand, are all related to healthcare facilities."
Victorian CHO apologises for confusion over 'third ring' isolation rules
By Rachael Dexter
Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton has apologised to Kilmore residents caught up in a contact-tracing nightmare over the "third ring" isolation rules.
Health authorities are asking contacts of close contacts of active cases to isolate and get tested, but there have been reports of conflicting advice.
"I apologise if there has been confusion, but we are committed to making it right and we do want to take that additional precautionary approach now that numbers are so low and out of stage four," Professor Sutton said.
"We are going to precautionary approach with that next ring of isolation for contacts of contacts. There are some elements to work through and we will take those lessons and hear the feedback but we want to make it as tight as possible and I can only thank the people of Kilmore for how they have responded."
Professor Sutton said when a close contact develops symptoms or becomes positive, they have been infectious for 48 hours or maybe three or four days before getting the positive test back.
He said "third ring" isolation was about trying to protect "the contacts of contacts from going out and potentially exposing others because they might have had transmission to them, even before that close contact has developed symptoms or tested positive".
The new case in the Kilmore outbreak today has been deemed a casual contact of the Oddfellows Cafe, Professor Sutton said.
"So someone went in for a short period of time," he said.
Train cases show need to wear mask on public transport: Berejiklian
By Mary Ward
Although NSW has not had a recent case where coronavirus was transmitted on public transport, Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the number of alerts issued for trains in Sydney this week show there is "a reason" why health authorities advise masks are worn.
"It's a risk and that's why when the health advice is 'in certain settings, we want you to wear a mask, there's a reason for that," she said.
"So when you go grocery shopping, when you go to a place of worship, when you use public transport, or even if you're in ... a health setting or any setting where you can't guarantee social distancing, you should be wearing a mask."
The Premier said it was "understandable" that people can become complacent when the state experiences days without local cases.
"But we need to shock ourselves out of that complacency and accept, and be reminded about how contagious the virus is."
Here is the list of the Sydney bus and train routes which were patroned by a person who has now tested positive for coronavirus.
- Train from Parramatta at 2.41pm arriving Town Hall at 3.31pm on Sunday
- Train from Town Hall at 5.29pm arriving Kings Cross at 5.50pm on Sunday
- Train from Artarmon at 11.18pm arriving Central at 11.48pm on Monday
- Bus replacement from Central at 11.48pm on Sunday arriving Strathfield at 12.15am on Monday
- Train from Strathfield at 12.15am arriving Parramatta 12.45am on Monday
- Bus 550 from Epping Station, Beecroft Rd, Stand D at 5.08pm to Smith St after Phillip St, Parramatta at 5.41pm on Tuesday
- Train from Moss Vale at 4.52am arriving Liverpool 7.09am on Tuesday
- Train from Liverpool at 4.58pm arriving Moss Vale at 7.12pm on Tuesday
- Train from Moss Vale at 4.51am arriving Liverpool 7.08am on Wednesday
- Train from Campbelltown at 1.31pm arriving Moss Vale at 3.50pm on Wednesday
'We will get on top of these outbreaks. We always do': Victoria's CHO
Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said while it was frustrating to see the 14-day average slow and plateau, only two or three cases per day were of concern because they weren't linked to known outbreaks.
Professor Sutton said among today's 11 new cases, there were links to a Uniting AgeWell aged care facility in Preston, a family outbreak in Frankston and the Chadstone cluster.
"They are challenging but we are throwing absolutely everything at them," he said. "We will get on top of these outbreaks, we always do."
"The really hard numbers are only at two or three per day," he said.
Professor Sutton expressed his pleasure at seeing aged care and health worker cases drop again.
"It is great to see that the total number of active cases is below 200 for the first time in a long, long time," he said.
No new cases: Queensland's COVID-19 streak continues
By Lucy Stone
No new COVID-19 cases have been recorded in Queensland overnight, bringing the total of active cases to four.
Deputy Premier Steven Miles said it was a day of "real cause of celebration" for Queensland as it marked 28 days since the last cluster.
There were 5555 tests conducted over the past 24 hours, hitting the state's testing goal.
Police have also asked three additional show workers to leave the state after they travelled from Victoria to Queensland on the wrong border permit.
Fourteen other workers were identified yesterday and immediately quarantined by police.
Local manufacturers making more than 1 million reusable face masks for Victorians
By Marissa Calligeros
The Victorian government has ordered 1.2 million reusable masks from six local manufacturers to be distributed to frontline workers and vulnerable communities.
Nobody Denim in Thornbury, The Ark/Thread Group in Burwood, Bluegum in Nunawading, Aquaterro in Pakenham, Styleprint in Kilsyth and Australian Defence Apparel in Thomastown and Bendigo will produce the face masks.
The first batch is expected to be delivered from next week, with all masks due to be available before Christmas.
Workers at Nobody Denim in Melbourne have been making masks for months.Credit:Getty
About 700,000 masks will be distributed to council offices, health centres, pharmacies and GP clinics, as well as disability, community care and mental health services.
The remainder will go to the government's stockpile to be accessessed as necessary by people with chronic or complex health conditions, people with a disability or people in high-density living arrangements.
Plastic face shields, bandannas or scarves are no longer permitted in Victoria. People must where a fitted face mask.
Masks with three layers are the recommended option.
NSW is on 'high alert' but also realistic, says Berejiklian
By Mary Ward
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has addressed remarks made by her Queensland counterpart yesterday that NSW being on "high alert" justified border closures.
"I know that exception was taken to my use of the word 'high alert', but during a pandemic we need to be on high alert every day," Ms Berejiklian told reporters on Friday.
The Premier said "while some people are very confident about a vaccine emerging next year or earlier", she was planning for how her state might have to run without one.
"I don't want to say that, but there's a possibility that we have to live with this for a while," she said.
"And what we need to do in NSW is give all of our citizens real opportunity to have a good lifestyle, whilst being COVID-safe and that's exactly the balance we're striking."
Victoria's Chadstone outbreak expands to include Ferguson Plarre employee
Another retail worker at Victoria's Chadstone shopping centre has contracted COVID-19.
The Ferguson Plarre store was deep-cleaned this morning after the employee worked in the store yesterday.
The Department of Health and Human Services is now working with the team at Ferguson Plarre to ensure all close contacts of the person are self-isolating while awaiting test results.
In a statement on their website, Chadstone said they were continuing to support businesses who had been directly impacted.
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2020-10-09 00:57:00Z
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