Close contacts cleared

HEALTH authorities have confirmed that all 17 close contacts of the Launceston teenager who tested positive to the Delta variant of Covid-19 have all returned negative test results, but another case from within the household could be expected.

The latest update from public health was provided by Acting State Health Commander Dale Webster during a commercial radio interview on Wednesday morning.

“While they were in the community, the people who came on the plane and went home, while they were actually in the community they were negative, so there’s not going to be further on spread because they were negative in the community,” Mr Webster said.

“But it doesn’t mean they’re out of the woods, so we’ll continue to test them at a number of points over the 14 days after first contact.”

Mr Webster said there was likely to be another case within the household.

“What we see in other states is usually if there is one case in a household, you will find there is second case in that household, it’s inevitable at some point,” Mr Webster said.

The 15-year-old left home quarantine to visit an IGA store in Newnham on Saturday

was infectious. The 35 people identified as casual contacts were also in quarantine and will be required to have further testing.

Mr Webster said 880 people were tested on Tuesday.

There were 274 tests conducted in the Wellington St facility in Launceston on Tuesday, up from 174 on Monday and 129 on Sunday.

Mr Webster said 13,000 people had home-quarantined in Tasmania this year and there had been two breaches.

“Overall it is a successful program, but of course we will review it and make sure we have got processes in place.

“We’ve had one or two breaches, but one breach is too many and we need to review it,” he said.

The radio interview was followed a number of hours later with a statement released from Health Minister Jeremy Rockliff.

Mr Rockliff encouraged anyone with even the mildest symptoms, particularly in the northern suburbs of Launceston to get tested, with mobile testing buses to be used in coming days to increase testing capacity.

When asked why the update was provided through the interview instead of normal public health means government Minister Sarah Courtney said she “couldn’t comment on announcements made through public health”.