Australia Covid live update: Qld reports three cases; NSW health workers exposed at two Sydney hospitals; Vic mask mandate returns

Queensland police said compliance with the mask rule and other Covid rules at the State of Origin match last night was “excellent”.

Police handed out 39 masks but no fines.

Queensland deputy premier Steven Miles is very keen to point out that this latest outbreak has come from outside the state.

We understand that this will come as disappointing news to people in South East Queensland, particularly to our hospitality businesses who were looking forward to those eased restrictions tomorrow, but it does appear that virus again has escaped either Sydney or the hotel quarantine system.

This decision is the right decision, based on the best possible advice. The fact is an extra week of masks is better than a lockdown. That is what we are trying to avoid.

Queensland chief health officer, Dr Jeanette Young, is providing a bit more information about those three new cases.

The 12-year-old boy and his mother had been in the United States for three months. They returned and underwent hotel quarantine in Sydney, flew back to Brisbane on 9 July on Qantas flight 544.

The boy then developed symptoms and saw a doctor at Aspley medical centre on 13 July, then went to the adjacent pharmacy, then was tested.

His father has also since tested positive. He is a financial adviser at Rowland Financial Advisory Services at Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast.

Young said:

He went to work yesterday while infectious. At this stage don’t believe that either child, mother, or father have been to any other exposure venues.

The boy’s mother has not tested positive but is in hospital with her son.

The airport worker is a woman in her 40s who lives in Tarragindi in Brisbane. She was vaccinated with two doses of Pfizer back in March.

She became unwell on the evening of Tuesday 13 July, went and got tested first thing yesterday and the result came back today.

Young says she is very concerned about that case.

I am very concerned about the Brisbane International airport worker. They have been working at the airport for three days while infectious. Nothing to do with them. They did absolutely the right thing and they were vaccinated. But, we now have to see where they have been working, who they have come into contact with. There is a significant risk there and any of those people could of course have gone home anywhere in South East Queensland. So we just need to maintain those restrictions for another seven days.

In response to the three new cases, Queensland will extend the mandatory mask rule for the greater Brisbane area for another week.

The rules were due to ease tomorrow. The mask rule will lift for Townsville, which was part of the original restrictions, at 6am tomorrow.

I know people will be disappointed by that. I am disappointed by that. Dr Young is disappointed by that. But what we are seeing is that these outbreaks are happening across the country.

Palaszczuk said that people from Queensland should not visit Victoria, and Victorians in Queensland should reconsider coming home.

So, if you are a Queenslander, do not go to Victoria at this time. If you are a Queenslander currently in Victoria, maybe reconsider your travel and think about coming home. OK, we have said to Queenslanders reconsider your travel into New South Wales as well. I cannot be clearer. We are seeing these little spot fires happening across the nation and we need to make sure we get this under control.

Palaszczuk said the 12-year-old boy completed their quarantine in Sydney then flew into Brisbane on flight QF544 on 9 July.

They then developed symptoms, got tested, and tested positive.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is speaking now.

She says Queensland has five new cases – two in hotel quarantine and three locally acquired.

They are a 12-year-old who flew in from Sydney, their parent, and a fully vaccinated worker at the Brisbane international airport.

The best people, Sikh Volunteers Australia, were at the Ariele apartments in Maribyrnong last night handing out free vegetarian meals.

When people say adversity brings out the best in people, they are talking specifically about these volunteers. They’re excellent.

We are about to head into a run of press conferences.

The Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is expected to give a press conference at 10.30am.

Then there’s the daily NSW press conference at 11am.

No time yet for Victoria.

Further to Josh Taylor’s post earlier about twitter deleting accounts spreading misinformation about Covid-19, they are also deleting Fleets.

You know, Fleets. The way to send short-lived tweets, like Instagram stories, which cribbed the idea from snapchat. That beloved feature that was introduced a few months ago and most of us forgot existed?

Twitter announced the news with “we’re sorry or you’re welcome”.

Roxy Jacenko, a Sydney personality/publicist/business owner, is being investigated for allegedly breaching lockdown rules.

Jacenko shared a letter she had received from the NSW government on Instagram and said she had done nothing wrong.

The letter said SafeWorkNSW “has been informed of an apparent work health and safety issue” at Jacenko’s business premises, Sweaty Betty PR, including “alleged inadequate controls from biological hazards”.

Specifically it is alleged that workers are not being allowed to work from home in line with public health orders without consultation or a reasonably practicable review being conducted.

In the caption, Jacenko said she had “had enough”.

Running a small business is hard enough, due to lockdown I have an empty office with over 20 working remotely, I am doing the work of at-least 4 myself, my online team (for 3 online stores) are working in the office on shorter hours as products don’t send themselves with Auspost. I have had 2 visits from the Police and now this letter — enough now. I wonder if I stopped paying the wages of these imbeciles who are making these reports of me apparently flouting the rules they might change their tune.

We have not got a time for the Victorian press conference yet today, but we are expecting to hear about some potential increased restrictions.

In the mean time, about 50 new exposure sites have been added to the Covid-19 exposure list overnight. I won’t go through them all but here are the tier one sites.

In Victorian vernacular, anyone who was at a tier one site is required to get tested immediately, contact VicHealth and remain isolated for 14 days, regardless of symptoms.

The new tier one sites are:

• The route 82 tram from Footscray Station to Edgewater Square on Saturday 10 July from 7.51pm to 8.14pm and also in the other direction, from Edgewater Square to Footscray Station, from 2.09pm to 2.25pm on the same day;
• Barwon Heads football and netball club on Monday 12 July from 4.30pm to 6pm – players and coaches only, spectators are tier 2;
• Craigieburn Sporting Club on Monday 12 July from 10.45am to 2.30pm;
• McDonald’s Craigieburn on Sunday 11 July from 11.50pm to 12.30pm and again on Tuesday 13 July from 1.35pm to 2.20pm;
• The route 70 tram from Flinders St to the to the MCG on Saturday 10 July form 3.46pm to 3.53pm;
• Several shops at the DFO at Uni Hill on Friday 9 July including Fila from 4.20pm to 4.50pm; Asics from 4.25pm to 4.55pm; yd from 4.50pm to 5.20pm; New Balance from 4.15pm to 4.45pm; Puma Australia from 4.20pm to 4.50pm; Nike from 4.30pm to 5pm; Under Armour from 4.40pm to 5.10pm; Cotton On from 5pm to 5.30pm; Adidas from 5.05pm to 5.35pm; Rivers from 5.10pm to 5.40pm; and Connor Clothing from 5.15pm to 6pm.
• Bizzler take-away in Campbellfield on Sunday 11 July from 2.30pm to 3.30pm;
• Southern Cross Medical Imaging in Epping on Monday 12 July from 9.45am to 10.35am;
• Bras N things at Highpoint shopping centre on 9 July from 11.15am to 11.30am.

There are also a number of exposure sites at train stations. Footscray Station on 10 July from 2.25pm to 2.30pm then 7.45pm to 8pm, and Jolimont railway station on 10 July from 7.05pm to 7.17pm, are tier two sites.

Flinders Street Station from 2.45pm to 3pm and again 7.15pm to 7.40pm is a tier 3 site.

Again the full list is here. It’s updated regularly so keep checking back.