The three-day shutdown was due to expire at 5pm but Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk brought this forward to 12pm today, due to all local cases in the past 48 hours being linked to a known infection.“That is good news for Queensland and Easter is good to go,” she told reporters.A number of new restrictions will come into effect from midday on Thursday, including the enforcement of wearing masks in public until April 15.“All Queenslanders will be required to carry a mask when they leave their home,” Ms Palaszczuk said.Chief health officer Jeannette Young applauded residents in the Sunshine State for limiting community transmission during the outbreak but warned the risk of further infections was not over.“We have to, unfortunately, keep those restrictions that have been in place for the next 14 days because we’re not completely cleared yet,” she said.“We think we can manage it with those restrictions and with the response that we have seen from Queenslanders, but it doesn’t mean the outbreak is over.“It just means that I don’t believe we need the lockdown to manage this outbreak going forward, we can use those other restrictions.”Brisbane-lockdown-mar-2021FESTIVAL CANCELLEDByron Bay’s Bluesfest has been cancelled for the second straight year after a local man tested positive on Tuesday night.The New South Wales government announced that the festival – which was hailed as the first major Australian music festival post-COVID – would not be permitted to go ahead over Easter.The move follows tougher restrictions being put on parts of northern NSW amid the new locally acquired case of coronavirus.NSW Health said Health Minister Brad Hazzard signed a public health order cancelling the festival, which was scheduled to take place on the Easter long weekend from Thursday through to Monday.“NSW Health acknowledges that the cancellation of Bluesfest is disappointing for ticket holders and event organisers, however while urgent investigations and contact tracing are ongoing, NSW Health is adopting a cautious approach to keep everyone safe,” the ministry said in a statement.“I hope that ticket holders would support Bluesfest and hold on to their tickets as I understand Bluesfest will be working on a new date as soon as possible,” Mr Hazzard said.Mr Hazzard said a number of infectious Queensland travellers attended various venues in the Byron Bay area in recent days, with one traveller infecting a local man in his 20s at the Byron Beach hotel on the evening of Friday 26 March.Up to 15,000 people were expected to attend the festival, which was to have featured performances by Jimmy Barnes, Kasey Chambers, Tash Sultana and Kate Ceberano, among others.Bluesfest director Peter Noble said he was “heartbroken” over the cancellation. “We really wanted to be at the forefront of the return of live music at pre-COVID-19 level,” Mr Noble said in a statement.“We feel deeply for everybody affected, the fans, the artists, and the hardworking Bluesfest team. But in the end, the health of our community must come first. We will be having discussions regarding Bluesfest postponement and will update everybody soon.”CASE ATTENDED HEN’S PARTYEarlier, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the positive case attended a hen’s party in Byron Bay but took a COVID test and isolated. It comes after 17,000 COVID tests.A a result the premier announced restrictions for the Byron, Ballina, Tweed and Lismore.Home visitors will be limited to 30, all venues will be mandated by a four square metre rule and everyone must be seated.“The positive news in all of this is we’re not saying to businesses shut your doors, quite the opposite,” the premier said.“We are saying you can keep your doors open but because of the risk that is there, we want you to be extra cautious. Until the end of Easter, you are able to keep your doors open but make sure you revert to the four square metre rule and make sure that all of your patrons are seated and not standing up and mingling.”CLICK HERE FOR NSW EXPOSURE SITESNED-3570-NSW-COVID-ThreatVACCINATED NURSE AMONG TWO NEW QLD CASESQueensland recorded three new cases of COVID overnight – including a nurse who had been vaccinated against COVID-19.One was a case acquired overseas in India and diagnosed in hotel quarantine. The other two are linked to known cases.Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the nurse who works at the Princess Alexandra Hospital had received the vaccine. Genomic sequencing revealed she has the same strain as another PA Hospital nurse who tested positive earlier in the week. It’s unclear whether the second nurse had received both doses of the COVID vaccine. The first nurse had only received her initial dose.Chief health officer Jeanette Young said health authorities are now trying to determine whether the nurse caught it in the same ward.“She was tested as part of the asymptomatic screening testing process for that ward and was found to be positive,” she said.“She has since developed some symptoms, but she was part of that testing. “So we just need to work out how she got it … she had been vaccinated prior to working that shift.”It comes after 33,408 tests over the past 24 hours.The state now has 71 active cases in hospital with 58 acquired overseas.Ms Palaszczuk said a decision on whether the Greater Brisbane lockdown would be extended would be announced at 9am on Thursday. But added it’s “encouraging news” that the local cases are linked.“The fact that we do not have any unlinked community transmission in the southeast or in our state is absolutely encouraging news. Thankyou Queensland. We are doing a great job and together we will get through this,” she said at a morning press conference.She urged anyone with symptoms to get tested adding the next 24 hours are critical.“What is really important over the next 24 hours is simply this – if you are sick, have any symptoms, go and get a test,” Ms Palaszczuk said.“Absolutely critical that we rule out any unlinked community transmission of COVID in our community. The signs are very encouraging and I want to thank everybody involved in this. Our contact tracers are first class and are working around the clock.” NED-3563-Links-In-The-Covid-ChainShe confirmed that there were people being treated for COVID in hospital in Bundaberg and Toowoomba. There are two COVID positive patients in the Gold Coast University Hospital.One of the state’s largest hospitals was locked down after a nurse tested positive last night.Workers in the infectious diseases ward of the Princess Alexandra Hospital that worked between March 19-28 with patients are undergoing urgent testing and patients are being moved to other wards.Mater Mothers’ Hospital in South Brisbane has also been caught up in the latest Brisbane outbreak after a positive case visited the private maternity section last Friday, The Courier Mail reports.Staff who had either visited or been in contact with people from floor 12 of the hospital from 11.30am on Friday are being urged to get tested.Infectious disease physician Associate Professor Paul Griffin said if there was an increase in cases, extending the lockdown would almost be certain.“We have clear community transmission that’s increased over the last few days and if we don’t do everything we can to get on top of this we could be in for a very difficult time here in Queensland,” Prof Griffin told The Courier Mail.“If definitely makes sense to do everything possible to try and contain this as quickly as possible.”Meanwhile, Queensland’s Health Minister Yvette D‘Ath is in isolation after being tested for COVID-19 amid a concerning outbreak in Brisbane.“The Health Minister contacted me this morning to say she has a sore throat so she has gone to get a COVID test,” Ms Palaszczuk said.“The Health Minister is following exactly her own advice and I encourage everyone else, if you have any symptoms as well, to please do the same and go and get a test.”STRIPPER LINKED TO BYRON BAY, QLD CLUSTERSA male stripper performed at a Byron Bay hen’s party over the weekend and visited a Gold Coast aged care facility while infected with COVID-19. The man, who works as a tradesperson during the week and performs as an exotic dancer on weekends, is linked to a second Queensland cluster. The first cluster has been linked to a doctor from the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane. The second cluster, currently responsible for five infections, is linked to a nurse from the same hospital, who travelled to Byron Bay with her sister for a party where the tradie was also in attendance.“One of the positive cases in that second cluster attended the hens party as an entertainer,” Queensland’s chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said on Tuesday. This man allegedly became infected at the party before returning to the Gold Coast where he attended the TriCare Mermaid Beach Aged Care Residence as a contractor working on refurbishments.Dr Young said every resident at the facility has already received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, but precautions are still being taken.A gym, shopping centre and cafe are among four new venues added to Queensland’s COVID-19 alert list.Anyone who visited the following places at the specified times should get tested immediately, even if you have no symptoms, and isolate until you receive a negative test result:CLICK HERE FOR LIST OF QLD EXPOSURE SITESCHIEF MINISTER IN ISOLATIONThe Northern Territory’s Chief Minister has been forced into isolation after coming into contact with people from Queensland’s COVID-19 hot spots and showing symptoms for the virus. “I am mildly symptomatic and while low risk recognise the importance of obeying the health advice,’ Michael Gunner shared via social media on Tuesday. The 45-year-old Labor leader spent time with his in-laws over the weekend, who had arrived from the arrived from the Queensland hotspot area of Toowoomba. Mr Gunner is now awaiting test results.QLD CLUSTER GROWSQueensland’s COVID-19 cluster rose by eight cases on Tuesday, as millions of residents woke up to their first day of lockdown.Greater Brisbane plunged into a three-day lockdown, after a cluster of the highly virulent UK strain emerged in the community.The new cases raised the new cluster to 15 cases, including two men from the city’s north, a nurse and her sister, two people believed to be colleagues of one of the northside men.Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said six of the state’s new cases are close contacts of previously confirmed cases, and two are under investigation.There were 78 cases active in the state on Tuesday. The nurse and her sister spent the weekend at Byron Bay while unknowingly infectious, while one of the men spent a number of days in Gladstone.It came as theGold Coast Bulletin was shown a letter seemingly penned by the facility manager of TriCare Mermaid Beach on Monday night, which outlines concerns.In the letter to “families and representatives”, the TriCare manager wrote the facility had “received news that a contractor involved with the refurbishments who was onsite today has returned a positive test for COVID-19”.“The contractor left the site immediately after he was notified of being a close contact to a confirmed case,” the letter reads.“The contractor had no direct contact with any residents for the two hour period that (they) was on site.”EASTER HOLIDAY PLANS IN CHAOSHolidays are up in the air after Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Monday announced Greater Brisbane would enter a snap, three-day lockdown.Ms Palaszczuk declared Greater Brisbane a hotspot and urged premiers from other states across the country to do the same thing.Western Australia introduced a hard border with Queensland from 12.01am on Tuesday, labelling the state a “medium risk” following the “escalating situation” with its COVID-19 outbreak.In recent days Queensland had been classified as a “low risk” state under WA’s controlled interstate border rules.Premier Mark McGowan said updated advice had been received from the WA chief health officer on Monday.Victoria declared Greater Brisbane a red zone under Victoria’s travel permit system as of 6pm Victorian time on Monday.A red zone means non-Victorian residents are not allowed to enter Victoria without an exception, specified worker permit, transit permit, freight worker permit, or exemption.Victorian residents in Greater Brisbane can apply for a ‘red zone’ permit to return home, but must quarantine for 14 days as soon as they arrive.Tasmania updated its public health advice on Monday after news of the lockdown broke.Anyone who has travelled to the Greater Brisbane local government areas in the past 14 days is now no longer permitted to enter the state unless they are classified as an essential traveller.South Australian Premier Steven Marshall quickly followed suit, declaring no one from the Greater Brisbane area would be allowed into the state from 4pm on Monday.Essential workers, South Australian residents and people relocating permanently for work will be permitted but will have to self-quarantine for 14 days.Mr Marshall said he wasn’t happy about instituting a hard border and it would come down as soon as was safe.NED-1859 State of our bordersPANIC BUYING CAUSES CHAOS IN BRISBANE A heavily pregnant woman was run into with a trolley by a shopper “desperate to get flour” and one-hour queues were reported as panic buying gripped a frenzied Brisbane on Monday.Queues to enter supermarkets snaked around corners with managers saying they were swamped with customers desperate to stockpile groceries, according to the Courier Mail.Queues of up to an hour were reported for shoppers to reach the check-outs.Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the new restrictions were needed to avoid a longer lockdown. “What this means for greater Brisbane is that we will have to go into a three-day lockdown. This is the UK strain. It is highly infectious. Now we need to do this now to avoid a longer lockdown,” she told reporters in Brisbane.The restrictions include the areas of Logan, Moreton Bay, Ipswich and Redlands.Residents are only be allowed to leave their house for four essential reasons: exercise with family groups, shopping for essentials, health care and caring; work and school if they can’t be done from home.Schools are closed and restaurants and cafes are only allowed to serve take away.Masks are mandatory in all public indoor settings. Mask wearing is compulsory for all public indoor spaces across Queensland, gatherings at home will be limited to 30 people, all patrons must be seated at hospitality venues and visitor limits will be introduced in hospitals, aged care homes and disability care centres.Four local cases announced on Monday raised the cluster linked to the Princess Alexandra Hospital to seven.The cluster unfolded as follows: a man in Stafford was diagnosed last Friday; he then infected a man in Strathpine wrongly accused of throwing a house party while isolating; the brother of one of the aforementioned men was found to be a historical case. He is no longer infectious but is believed to be the missing link between this cluster and a doctor who was infected earlier in the month; two of the new cases are work colleagues of the Strathpine man. They may also be housemates. One of these men was in Gladstone between March 25 and 28 while infectious; a nurse who worked in a COVID-19 ward has also been infected; the nurse’s sister was also infected. They both travelled to Byron Bay, NSW, while infectious.MORE THAN 500,000 AUSTRALIANS VACCINATEDHealth Minister Greg Hunt on Monday said that there have been 82,500 aged care residents who have now been vaccinated and that covers over 795 facilities that have received first doses and 222 that have received a second dose.Total national vaccinations now stand at 541,761, with more than 259,000 vaccinations in the last week as the general practice program came on board.“So I think that is extremelyimportant and that’s indicating that this program is continuing to accelerate as it will this week,” Mr Hunt said.He urged anyone in Brisbane that has a vaccination planned to keep the appointment. “Vaccinations are considered a critical reason to leave home,” he said“We would encourage all patients, subject to checking with their doctors, to continue with their vaccination program.”Over 82,000 aged care residents have now been vaccinated as Australia’s vaccination total hits 541,000. Health Minister Greg Hunt said Australia can only be “fully protected once we are vaccinated” and after nations across the globe are vaccinated. He pointed to the ongoing COVID outbreaks across the world as the number of global cases grows by around 500,000 a day. As part of Australia’s ongoing rollout, 82,500 aged care residents have been vaccinated across over 795 facilities. Over 259,000 vaccines in the past week has also brought Australia’s total national vaccinations to 541,761 as the nation’s GPs continue their rollout program.When you can get the COVID vaccine?COVID ‘PARTY HOST’ BREAKS SILENCEA Brisbane man with COVID-19 falsely accused of hosting a party while awaiting his test results has broken his silence, saying Queensland Health “mixed up” contact tracing information. Lachlan Simpson, 25, tested positive to the virus on Friday night after his friend, a 26-year-old Stafford man, returned a positive result on Thursday. Queensland Health released a statement on Saturday night, saying Mr Simpson had hosted a party for 25 people while awaiting his test results. But Health Minister Yvette D’Ath backtracked on that claim on Sunday, saying only five people were in the home. Queensland Police on Sunday night confirmed that no one apart from Mr Simpson and his four housemates had been in the house while they awaited their test results. Mr Simpson told Nine News he had hosted a gathering of 25 people “two weeks prior” to getting tested. “My heart’s been racing for the last 24 hours … I didn’t have a party with 25 people,” he said from his isolated room at the Royal Brisbane Hospital on Sunday.“Somehow they’ve taken that day and moved it forward to Friday.“We went on a pub crawl the next day (after the gathering two weeks ago) but I think at that point I had no symptoms at all.”Ms D’Ath did not apologise to Mr Simpson on Sunday when asked if she would like to and has failed to explain how the incorrect information was released. “That is the information that I was briefed on at the time,” she said. “I understand that the health officials who originally spoke to this gentleman … they say that’s what they understood he had told them. “Whether it was a misunderstanding at the time, or what it was, I can’t tell you.“I wasn’t there. I didn’t hear the conversation.”Lachlan Simpson has spoken out about how authorities falsely accused him of hosting a party while awaiting COVID test results. Queensland Police confirmed on Sunday night that their independent investigation had found no evidence of wrongdoing. “Police investigators have not found any evidence to warrant action being taken against a man following reports of a house party involving people in quarantine at Strathpine,” a statement read.“Inquiries into this matter are now finalised.”Deputy Commissioner Steve Gollschewski told Today on Monday that police had acted quickly to try to stop “the virus spreading.”“In policing, people tell us lots of things and we have to run it out and work out what the truth is, and it takes time sometimes … but in a pandemic you have to act quickly,” he said.“What we are worried about, and what we have seen previously, is there is a strong reaction against people who are seen to have spread COVID … We wanted to jump on that and stop that happening.”Queensland Health has also updated their contact tracing information based on Mr Simpson’s movements while he was unknowingly infectious. National Vaccine RolloutQLD PREMIER BEGS PM TO REDUCE OVERSEAS ARRIVALSQueensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk made a desperate request to Scott Morrison to alter his COVID-19 plan amid a surge in positive cases in the state.Ms Palaszczuk wants the prime minister to halve the number of overseas arrivals permitted into Queensland, with the state’s hospitals close to capacity.“Basically, every day over the last fortnight, we have been seeing five or six cases,” she said in a press conference on Saturday.“We’re almost at the capacity of our hospitals that we were at the peak the pandemic. That is not to say our hospitals cannot cope, they will be able to cope, but this is a large influx that we are seeing, and the high rate of people coming back are returned travellers testing positive.”Ms Palaszczuk said she had written to Mr Morrison asking for a two-week postponement. She said around 1300 people a week were coming into the state from overseas.“I’m asking the Prime Minister to halve our number of overseas returning travellers,” she said.We are just asking for the next two weeks while we get everything under control, and the fact that we are seeing these every single days, we are getting positives out of hotel quarantine. We’re not seeing large-scale immunity transmission, just close contacts.”– with Shae McDonald, Ellen Ransley
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