Thousands of Sydney residents have been ordered into isolation as authorities urgently trace the source of a hotel worker’s quarantine infection.
Anyone who caught a host of Sydney’s busiest trains or the CBD light rail over several days late last week has been told to get tested and isolate until they hear from health authorities.
It comes after a hotel worker at the Novotel and the Ibis at Darling Harbour was confirmed with the virus on Thursday.
The woman’s case, which brings to an end NSW’s 26-day streak without a single new case of COVID-19 in the community, was officially added to the state’s numbers on Friday.
NSW Health is also testing all staff at the hotels, which are in a single complex at Darling Harbour.
The testing and isolation request is for anyone who caught the same public transport between Minto and Darling Harbour. The infected worker is believed to have used the routes dozens of times while potentially infectious.
“It’s sort of a hold and stay until we’ve assessed the extent of what is going on,” chief health officer Kerry Chant said on Thursday.
Tweet from @NSWHealth
Urgent genomic testing is under way to determine how the woman contracted the virus, with results due on Friday or early Saturday.
But authorities remain concerned the woman, who had no contact with guests at either hotel, might have caught the virus through another worker.
Her five household members have returned negative test tests, and NSW Health is awaiting the results of some of her close contacts.
The re-emergence of the virus outside hotel quarantine in Sydney has also jeopardised the looming opening of the Western Australian border to NSW residents.
WA Premier Mark McGowan said it on Thursday was too early to make a call the December 8 opening. But he was worried a cluster could form from the new NSW case.
“Obviously if the chief health officer recommends that we delay opening to NSW, then that is the decision we will make,” he said.
Such an outbreak would also likely mean Victorians would also be barred from heading west without quarantine. WA is treating both states as one for the December 8 decision.
However, Queensland remains “very happy” with NSW’s progress on tracking down the origins of the worker’s infection.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said no NSW resident should be too concerned about getting into Queensland for Christmas.
“Our chief health officers are speaking regularly and they’re very happy with the contact tracing that is happening at the moment,” Ms Palaszczuk told Nine’s Today show on Friday.
“We are watching it carefully to see if it turns into a cluster outbreak. But at the moment there’s no need for any concern from anyone, so continue with your plans.
“We’re monitoring it closely and if anything changes we will let people know.”
Queensland reopened its border to travellers from greater Sydney only this week.
On Thursday, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said breaches of hotel quarantine were bound to happen, noting the state was due to welcome back its 100,000th returned traveller within days.
“This is a real test for NSW but I’m confident if we continue the path we’re on, that we will pass this test yet again.”
Victoria’s virus milestone
Victoria’s streak of days free of new coronavirus cases has hit 35, ahead of a weekend announcement about eased restrictions.
Friday’s figures, with 8784 tests in the previous 24 hours, mean Victorians have notched up five weeks without any new virus infections.
The milestone come with Premier Daniel Andrews expected on Sunday to confirm more easing of virus measures ahead of Christmas.
There will be another milestone on Monday, with five international flights due to land at Melbourne airport as Victoria’s revamped hotel quarantine program restarts for overseas travellers.
South Australia also confirmed no new cases in its Parafield outbreak on Friday. It remains at 33 infections.
-with AAP
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