Qld’s top doc drops L-word

THERE WILL BE INTERRUPTIONS TO PEOPLE’S LIVES – THERE WILL BE LOCKDOWNS.

ACTING CHIEF HEALTH OFFICER DR PETER AITKEN

TWO new Covid exposure sites have been listed on the Gold Coast, after Queensland’s acting chief health officer issued a stark warning about lockdowns, and Omicron’s impact after the border opens.

Dr Peter Aitken said on Tuesday morning “there will be interruptions to peoples’ lives” as the Covid variant gains a foothold in the state. He warned “there will be lockdowns” – despite the growing vaccination rate in Queensland, now very close to 80 per cent double-vaccinated.

Dr Aitken said that it appeared Omicron was “more infectious and transmissible”, but hopefully resulted in “a less severe illness”.

His comments come as new exposure sites were listed – at Bunnings in Nerang on Thursday, December 2, from 11.45am to 12.07pm, and Target in Coomera on Friday, December 3, from 8am to 8.50am.

But health authorities have stood firm that there will be no more border closures, with Queensland’s reopening to southern states slated for December 13.

Dr Aitken urged eligible Queensland residents to get vaccinated as soon as possible, which would hamper the progress of the virus’ spread.

Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said a worldfirst new type of Omicron case – which she dubbed “Omicronlike” – was detected in a man who flew into Queensland from Nigeria. He has tested positive in the past 24 hours.

The second case involves a person who tested positive after arriving from South Africa. It means Queensland has recorded two separate lineages of the variant.

Ms D’Ath said two new coronavirus cases had been detected in hotel quarantine – the Nigerian arrival and an interstate traveller.

The Omicron patients are in Brisbane and Cairns.

Ms D’Ath said genome sequencing had confirmed the variant in the Nigerian traveller, who flew into Cairns on Friday, December 3.

“So that now means everyone on that flight has been deemed to be a close contact, not just those who were immediately seated around this individual,” she said.

Ms D’Ath said because it was a flight from a hotspot, the majority of people who were on board should already be quarantining in some form.

As of Tuesday morning, 87.53 per cent of eligible residents had had their first dose of a Covid vaccine and 79.11 per cent had received two doses.

Seniors are leading the charge, while residents aged 20-39 were lagging behind.

Ms D’Ath said there were 40 active Covid cases in the state and 12,258 vaccine doses had been administered by Queensland Health in the previous 24 hours.

Also, Dr Aitken said that he was aware not all testing facilities were seeing infants under 12 months and “some testing sites preferred to work with adults only”.

Dr Aitken said infants under one would be salivaswabbed as opposed to the more invasive throat and nose swab, which is carried out after 12 months of age.