Two returned travellers have tested positive for the South African variant of COVID-19. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
Two returned travellers in hotel quarantine in the ACT are carrying the highly infectious South African variant of the COVID-19 virus.
The two new cases of COVID-19 were reported on Sunday, bringing the ACT’s total to 122.
The man and woman, both in their 40s, arrived on a Government-facilitated flight on 1 March, 2021, and were tested as part of day five testing on Saturday. Both are reported to be well and are being supported by ACT Health.
As with the previous two cases reported last week, the new cases are being cared for in a separate area of the hotel from other returned travellers.
The new female case is a family member of the male under the age of 20 who tested positive last week. She has been in quarantine with him.
The new male case was seated in an adjacent row to a previously identified case during the flight to Canberra.
Genome sequencing will be conducted early next week.
Day five testing was offered to all returned travellers from the Government-facilitated flight to help identify any further cases early during the quarantine period. Any returned traveller who experiences any symptoms of COVID-19 at any point during the 14-day quarantine period will also be tested.
The ACT has strong systems in place for hotel quarantine that are designed to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission. As part of this, all staff working in hotel quarantine follow stringent PPE and infection control processes, and participate in the Safeguarding Canberrans (SCAN) program in which they undergo daily symptom screening and regular COVID-19 testing.
Meanwhile, the ACT Government has made the Check In CBR app mandatory from yesterday, with $1000 fines for individuals and $5000 fines for businesses caught flouting the new rules.
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