22 November 2021

UPDATED: Another school exposed to COVID-19; ACT records 11 new cases

| Lottie Twyford
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St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School

St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School – Kambah was exposed to COVID-19 on Wednesday, 17 November and Thursday, 18 November. Photo: St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School.

UPDATED 1 pm: St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School in Kambah has been exposed to COVID-19 on Wednesday, 17 November, and Thursday, 18 November.

Anyone who is required to quarantine or deemed to be a close or casual contact will receive direct communication from ACT Health or the school.

To date, 23 Canberra school campuses have now been listed as exposure sites since Monday, 1 November, when all ACT students returned to on-campus learning.

Currently, no ACT public schools are closed due to COVID-19 exposure.

A number of new casual exposure locations were added to the government’s COVID-19 website this morning.

In what’s quickly becoming a trend, many of these are once again popular nightlife destinations such as clubs and bars.

See the website for more details.

Canberra Hospital

From this morning, visitor restrictions have eased at hospitals and other facilities to allow two visitors per patient per day. Photo: Michelle Kroll.

10 am: The ACT has recorded 11 new cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8 pm yesterday.

There are five COVID patients in hospital, with two in the ICU and one on a ventilator.

A total of 1624 negative tests were received in the 24 hours to 9 am today. There are 184 active cases in the ACT.

Of the Territory’s 12-plus population, 97.2 per cent are now fully vaccinated.

Yesterday, the ACT recorded 16 new cases of COVID-19.

Visitor restrictions eased this morning at all ACT hospitals, community health centres and walk-in centres. Two visitors per patient per day are now permitted during visiting hours.

A spokesperson for ACT Health said the decision to restrict visitors to health facilities is “always a difficult one” but means the health and safety of everyone, including vulnerable patients, is ensured.

Visitors to health facilities are required to wear a surgical face mask at all times, restrict their movement to the visiting area, maintain social distancing and complete the ACT Health digital screening tool.

Compassionate exceptions to the visitor policy will be determined on a case-by-case basis, ACT Health’s website states.

While not mandatory, it is “strongly recommended that visitors are fully vaccinated against COVID-19”.

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Overnight, several new casual contact exposure locations were listed online.

Exposure locations on Wednesday, 17 November, include The Scholar in Dickson between 7:20 pm and 8:45 pm, Canberra Deakin Football Club (Function room) between midday and 3 pm and St Augustine’s Catholic Church Farrer between 8:45 am and 11 am.

On Thursday, 18 November, Eastlake Calwell Club is listed as an exposure location between 11:55 am and 1:05 pm, while on Friday, 19 November, Yat-Bun-Tong Belconnen is the only exposure location listed. It was exposed to the virus between 5:15 pm and 6 pm.

Over the weekend, a number of popular nightlife venues were once again listed as COVID-19 exposure locations, including pubs and clubs in Civic.

See the COVID-19 website for more details and specific instructions to follow as a close or casual contact.

An additional date of exposure at Charles Weston School has been extended – Wednesday, 17 November. Previously, it was listed for Thursday, 11 November, and Friday, 12 November.

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In NSW, there are 180 cases and one more death.

There are 202 people in hospitals across the state with the virus, 30 of whom are in ICU.

NSW Health said 94.4 per cent of the 16-plus population have had their first dose, and 91.8 per cent have had two doses.

In Victoria, there are 1029 new cases and three deaths.

There are 316 Victorians hospitalised with COVID-19, and 89 per cent of the state’s eligible population (12 and over) is fully vaccinated.

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