Australian Reports of the Virus Spread

[justinbrett]

Well, when we went to Bali we were screened for temperature and many people were marched away......

Wait, so Australia didn’t ban outwards travel? They just let you leave in the middle of a pandemic?

 

[Pushka]

Wait, so Australia didn’t ban outwards travel? They just let you leave in the middle of a pandemic?

Yep. Don't get me started on the current ban.

 

[justinbrett]

Yep. Don't get me started on the current ban.

I’m stirring. Point being is nothing comes close to Covid other than the Spanish flu.

 

[Pushka]

I’m stirring. Point being is nothing comes close to Covid other than the Spanish flu.

SARS did I think. And no ban then either. Husband went to Singapore in the middle of it.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

And I think the real NSW view/hope is that quarantine won't be required by the end of the year once most people are vaccinated. So bit of a waste of money building these facilities.

While Australia may be nearing full vaccination of the of those that want to be vaccinated, or those that can be (as some cannot be), for most of 2022 there is also still going to a lot of people worldwide who are not fully vaccinated, or where you might have doubts as to whether a person has been vaccinated adequately or not.

So I would tend to think that some amount of quarantine would still be required for a chunk of 2022, but that it most likely would be quite different beast to what the model now is.

ie

• It could be that residents get to quarantine (possibly just those who are not vaccinated) at home, but that non-residents have to quarantine in designated facilities.
• It could be for those without a vaccination certificate (or at least one that the Gov has faith in), including potentially someone that arrives without one, or is determined to have a fake one etc.
• It could be for those who test positive on arrival. This could include a returning resident who tests postive and may not want to, or simply cannot, quarantine at home.

If travel resumes at higher levels, 500 beds is not really that much capacity at all. With a 14 day quarantine that is only about 36 people per day to be directed to quarantine.

Now rooms have to cleaned etc. So for random arrivals they would not actually use 500 beds per night. Plus with family units some beds would not be used.

I doubt they will get back to 11 million arrivals per day anytime soon, but that is about 31,000 arrivals per day. So 20/30 per day into quarantine is not much at all of the potential throughput.



One thing for sure is that if flights do resume at anything near reasonable levels, is that hotel owners will want their hotels back operating as hotels.

Would be good if they designed them for another purpose - like emergency housing for DV / single pensioners etc. Even university accommodation. But building them just for quarantine is a bit of a waste of money IMO (at least the VIC proposal looks nice - the QLD proposal was horrid)

If they go for demountable, they could be repurposed at other locations..

If at Avalon, there could be potential to become airport accommodation. Apart from travellers Avalon also is a base for pilot training.

 

[nutwood]

I don't see a problem with spending money to build quarantine facilities. Should have been done 12 months ago. How are the $'s poured into Job Keeper any different from $'s that could be expended on building proper, high capacity quarantine facilities?
Federally owned, federally funded. Quarantine is a federal responsibility.

 

[oz_mark]

I don't see a problem with spending money to build quarantine facilities. Should have been done 12 months ago. How are the $'s poured into Job Keeper any different from $'s that could be expended on building proper, high capacity quarantine facilities?
Federally owned, federally funded. Quarantine is a federal responsibility.

The constitution gives the federal government exclusive rights to make laws. Nothing to stop them coming to agreements with the states to deliver it (and I am not sure the federal government could deliver it without a significant level of state involvement)

 

[justinbrett]

Let’s face it, we would have been seeing state police road blocks of international terminals and arriving passengers sleeping on stretchers in the arrivals hall. That would be the level of cooperation from the states if the federal government took it on solely.

The brutal fact of the matter is it had to be a shared responsibility as neither could do it alone.

 

[jakeseven7]

Just an update on the appalling treatment that this couple is getting from the QLD CHO, all in the name of ‘preventing the virus spreading’ despite being vaccinated and returning multiple negative tests - they are now seeking an QLD Health aponaoeedevacuation to Melbourne to get out of here and who can blame them.

Surely SOMETHING can be done.

Just disgusting.

——

Parents separated from premature newborn by QLD Health seek repatriation from Brisbane to Melbourne​

A couple separated from their newborn baby by quarantine restriction has called on Queensland Health authorities to "correct a mistake" and help repatriate the family of three to Melbourne.

Dr Young defended her decision to keep the couple away from their newborn baby.

Parents separated from premature newborn by quarantine seek repatriation from Brisbane to Melbourne

Moe and Sarah Haidar have not seen their baby son since he was born premature in a Brisbane hospital more than a week ago because they have been in quarantine after arriving from overseas, but they are both fully vaccinated.

www.abc.net.au

 

[lovetravellingoz]

Now that there is a point of focus for the Delta Outbreak, additional testing is being done which according to The Age (in several different updates) includes serology testing of the residents as well as more PCR tests two residents in particular who did not do the voluntary day 17 and 20 tests, as well mores workers including testing of airport cleaners and restocker.

A lot of this testing should be available by sometime tomorrow, and some may have been completed by the time of the mornings figures or presser.

One hotel staff member cannot be followed up as he has left the country for Dubai.

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“The aircrew didn’t get off the plane, they just did a quick refuel and turned around with 12 other passengers,” she told ABC Radio Melbourne a short time ago. “The only thing we haven’t run to ground in its entirety is the cleaners and the restocking: have they been tested and is there any exposure there?”​

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Those who clean the planes are not government staff overseen by Ms Cassar’s department.​

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“We look after what people get off the plane, which has been our focus, but public health are working with Melbourne Airport to get to the bottom of that one,” she said.​

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According to Ms Cassar, among those who have been tested and returned negative results are Border Force staff (including the officer who handled the man’s passport), the Skybus driver and the majority of staff at the Ibis Hotel where the man spent just over 24 hours before being moved to the Holiday Inn health hotel.​

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“Of the 268 staff 265 are cleared. I’m hoping by tonight that those last few will be cleared: that means they’ve had frequent, and negative test,” she said.​

​

The transport staff who took the man to the medical hotel have also returned negative results, she said.​

 

[dajop]

Now that there is a point of focus for the Delta Oubreak additional testing is being done which according to The Age (in several different updates) includes serology testing of the residents as well as more PCR tests two residents in particular who did not do the voluntary day 17 and 20 tests, as well mores workers including testing of airport cleaners and restocker.

I hope, and pray that both of the residents that missed their 17 and 20 day tests have negative test results. If not, I fear Australia will become like Singapore and mandate a 21 day quarantine. That would be tough. Really tough.

 

[Pushka]

I hope, and pray that both of the residents that missed their 17 and 20 day tests have negative test results. If not, I fear Australia will become like Singapore and mandate a 21 day quarantine. That would be tough. Really tough.

Like the poor buggars in SA now doing 28 days because SA CHO decided that the testing of a later positive child in the corridor for 15 minutes ran the risk of spread to other quarantiners. (What were they thinking). Several were to be released the day after the announcement. Of course, they didn't pay for that second period so they should be grateful

 

[JessicaTam]

Like the poor buggars in SA now doing 28 days because SA CHO decided that the testing of a later positive child in the corridor for 15 minutes ran the risk of spread to other quarantiners. (What were they thinking). Several were to be released the day after the announcement. Of course, they didn't pay for that second period so they should be grateful

TBH they shouldn't pay for the first 14 days either.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

Only 1 case, and they were quarantining.

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VicGovDH​

@VicGovDH​

·​

4m​

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The one new locally-acquired case is linked to the current outbreaks and has been quarantining during their infectious period.​

 

[justinbrett]

I wonder how the delta outbreak would have gone if Melbourne wasn’t in lockdown

 

[jakeseven7]

Wonderful news the case is linked (Again). Great to see the vaccination numbers remaining high as well.

 

[Pushka]

There are many colds and runny noses in SA population right now, and no fever. Bog standard cold we didn't even bother much with until covid. These will increase as the weather turns south. It's going to get problematic if you are the sort of person who gets such colds regularly, every couple of weeks in one case we know, so you get the test, have to take to day off work until you get the result. People just don't get that much sick leave to burn through two - three days every few weeks. And if casual, well, there goes your income. It's easy for Public Service to tell people to not work as they will still get paid. If there's no community spread, then it's understandable to delay testing. What to do?

 

[lovetravellingoz]

We have all known since the early cases that the delay in many to get tested was a key issue in this outbreak.

An article by Grant McArthur from the Herald Sun explores that plus also examines the contact tracing and their current performance of exceeding the national benchmarks and in for example achieving 5 rings of contacts in only 60 hours..



The article starts off with...





and

 

[hydrabyss]

There are many colds and runny noses in SA population right now, and no fever. Bog standard cold we didn't even bother much with until covid. These will increase as the weather turns south. It's going to get problematic if you are the sort of person who gets such colds regularly, every couple of weeks in one case we know, so you get the test, have to take to day off work until you get the result. People just don't get that much sick leave to burn through two - three days every few weeks. And if casual, well, there goes your income. It's easy for Public Service to tell people to not work as they will still get paid. If there's no community spread, then it's understandable to delay testing. What to do?

My partner works in aged care and developed a cold over the last 2 days and was meant to go to work tomorrow. So off to get a covid test and hopefully get the result soon so she doesn't miss too many work days as they are understaffed as it is and chances are no one will fill her shift. Funny thing is she had only been at work prior to getting the symptoms and most likely caught it there.

 

[Pushka]

My partner works in aged care and developed a cold over the last 2 days and was meant to go to work tomorrow. So off to get a covid test and hopefully get the result soon so she doesn't miss too many work days as they are understaffed as it is and chances are no one will fill her shift. Funny thing is she had only been at work prior to getting the symptoms and most likely caught it there.

Parents of young kids will be getting tested multiple times this winter. And grandparents as well.