The latest concern for Victorians nervously watching the New South Wales COVID-19 outbreak unfold is a crew of removalists who were working in the state last week.
Two members of that three-person crew have since tested positive to COVID-19 and health authorities are scrambling to find out precisely where they went.
As we wait for more information to come to light, including any exposure sites, it's worth recapping what we do know.
Where have they been, and when?
The crew of three men arrived in Melbourne on Thursday, July 8 from Sydney, where they delivered a set of furniture to a home in Craigieburn in the City of Hume, north of Melbourne, then did a collection in the City of Maribyrnong in Melbourne's west.
They came into contact with two families of four through that process.
The crew then spent the night in Victoria before heading to Adelaide the next morning, arriving that same day, Friday, July 9.
A member of the crew was contacted by NSW Health that day, on July 9, and told he was a primary close contact of another positive case.
All three crew members returned to Sydney.
The man who was told he was a primary close contact was tested on July 10, after returning to NSW, and his positive result came back on Sunday.
Victoria's COVID-19 Commander Jeroen Weimar said another member of the three-person crew returned a positive result on Monday.
Were they allowed to be in Victoria?
Health Minister Martin Foley said although the precise details of this group's trip were yet to be determined, removalists are permitted to cross state borders.
He said there was "every prospect" that the crew was doing the right thing.
Although removalists are permitted to cross state borders, they have to abide by special rules to go about their work.
Mr Weimar said that a moving business falls under a national code for freight movement, meaning staff have to get tested every seven days and they must regard their time in the state as "being under isolation".
"[They] cannot leave their vehicle while they're in Victoria and in the event they need food and fuel, they must [use] masks, use sanitation and do all those other distancing protocols and remain in their vehicle overnight," Mr Weimar said.
What about the people who were moving house?
The South Australian government has revealed that a family being moved in the state had been in the removalist crew's presence for about five hours, but so far none of them have tested positive.
The family of four from the City of Maribyrnong that came into contact with the removalists remains in Victoria in temporary accommodation, has been isolating and so far none of them has tested positive to COVID-19.
It's likely they will go into hotel quarantine.
Mr Weimar said the family at Craigieburn had arrived from interstate on July 6 — not from NSW — and had not had much contact with the community.
"If they are positive, it will be a very short window and we know their movements so we are in reasonable shape on that one," he said.
So how much risk does this situation pose?
At the press conference this afternoon, Mr Weimar said he had concerns that the information being given to health authorities by the removalists was "not as crisp and clear and consistent" as it should be.
He also said there was conflicting information about whether or not the crew members were wearing masks.
"I don't have a complete accurate track in terms of exactly where they stayed," Mr Weimar said.
"My understanding at this point in time is that they stayed in their cab as part of their protocols.
"Any other locations they may have stopped at we're still trying to track down definitively."
Mr Weimar said he was not surprised to see "some flying embers" coming across from NSW, but it was crucial to get the details correct so any exposure sites could be listed as soon as possible.
He stressed that the investigation had only begun today and health authorities were working quickly to shore up all the details.
"We'll go at this all night long if we have to get the information we need so we can get this under control," Mr Weimar said.
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2021-07-12 08:30:52Z
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