A Victorian teenager has tested positive to coronavirus in quarantine after returning from Sydney’s northern beaches, where a rapidly changing outbreak has thrown the region back into lockdown.
Victoria recorded three new cases in hotel quarantine on Monday, health authorities announced on Tuesday, comprising of two overseas arrivals and one 15-year-old returned interstate traveller.
The state has not had a case of community transmission for 53 days.
Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley told reporters on Tuesday there were currently no exposure sites linked to the confirmed case from Sydney, who isolated with her parent on return to Victoria after visiting family interstate. The teenager’s mother has tested negative to the virus.
“They have isolated when they returned to Victoria and as a result of the awareness of the situation in Sydney, the young person has sought testing,” he said.
“So far, we have no reason to not believe the family, and they are solid citizens, they’re doing the right thing.”
The 15-year-old has visited a number of high-risk locations in the Northern Beaches, including Avalon RSL and Avalon Bowling Club. The family is currently isolating at home after the teenager returned a positive test on Monday, Mr Foley said.
Travellers who have passed through Greater Sydney and the Central Coast have been banned from entering Victoria, while residents from wider New South Wales must apply for a travel permit. Anyone who is found to have breached these rules will be forced into supervised quarantine.
Victorian residents in Sydney and the Central Coast had until midnight on Monday to return to Victoria without undertaking a mandatory 14-day supervised quarantine. Returning residents will now need to undergo hotel quarantine if they wish to return home.
“We need to work hard to protect our hard-won status. We should take this as a really significant lesson that this is not over,” Mr Foley said. “That 53 days is not a vaccine.”
The mystery outbreak in Sydney’s northern beaches grew to 83 cases on Monday, as health authorities rush to determine how the virus entered the community.
NSW health authorities are scheduled to provide an update on case numbers within the hour.
Northern Beaches residents are subject to lockdown conditions until midnight on Wednesday, meaning people are only able to leave their home to exercise, shop for essential goods, attend education or work, or for caregiving or health reasons.
A number of confirmed cases visited locations outside of the Northern Beaches while infectious, NSW Chief Medical Officer Kerry Chant said on Monday, including the Turramurra Salon for Hair, which has had five cases linked to the location, and the Rose of Australia hotel in Erskineville, where two cases have been confirmed.
A full list of locations visited by confirmed cases is being updated on the NSW Health website.
Health authorities currently suspect the source of the outbreak could have been a woman from the United States after genome sequencing confirmed similarities between the strains of the virus, however, Dr Chant said it wasn’t a “perfect match”.
An “extensive investigation” is continuing to determine how the virus could have escaped quarantine to enter the community, which has included monitoring CCTV footage and the testing of any workers who came in contact with the woman.
People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others. Check your jurisdiction’s restrictions on gathering limits. If you are experiencing cold or flu symptoms, stay home and arrange a test by calling your doctor or contact the Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.
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Please check the relevant guidelines for your state or territory: NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, Northern Territory, ACT, Tasmania.
