SA Covid update for January 6: 3070 new cases and 123 patients in hospital, woman dies with Covid

A woman has reportedly died a day after testing positive to Covid, as SA records 3070 new cases and new exposure sites are announced.

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A woman in her 60s has been named as the latest South Australian to have died with Covid.

Christine Eross, 65, of Angle Park, died on Wednesday at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, a day after testing positive to the virus.

“It was very upsetting to be honest, I was very shocked,” Ms Eross’s son, Darien Eross, told 7NEWS. “She loved everyone, she treated everyone with respect.”

Her death will be investigated by the Coroner. It was not included in the state’s daily figures.

There were 3070 new cases of Covid-19 announced in SA on Thursday – a fall from 3493 the day before.

There are 123 patients in hospital, a slight reduction from 125 on Wednesday, while the number in intensive care remains stable at 12 with one of them on a ventilator.

On Thursday night, SA Health announced new Covid exposure sites – which it only does now if there is a high risk or a confirmed transmission at the site.

The new sites are at the Derrimut 24:7 Gym at Gepps Cross, the Derrimut 24:7 Gym at Melrose Park, Anytime Fitness at Murray Bridge, the Caledonian Inn and The Project in Robe, and the Bond Store at Wallaroo.

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There are now 308 SA Health staff including ambulance officers who have tested positive and a further 265 SA Health workers “furloughed” but who can work from home.

Premier Steven Marshall said vaccinations hit 19,998 on Wednesday, including 15,500 people getting booster shots.

Mr Marshall and chief public health officer Professor Nicola Spurrier on Friday will announce additional vaccination capacity aimed at getting schoolchildren aged 5-11 at least partially vaccinated before school starts.

“We are really keen to get students back to school because we know face-to-face learning is optimal, we want to do it in a safe way for students and teachers,” he said.

“I would love it and I think a lot of parents would love it if students could go back on day one of term one but I think it is still too early to say in South Australia.”

The Education Department has mapped out plans for home-based learning if there are delays.

Mr Marshall said SA’s imminent switch in focus to rapid antigen testing instead of PCR testing was “a huge logistical exercise ... but this is the appropriate response for this (stage) of the disease”.

Close contacts of positive Covid cases will soon be given two free rapid antigen tests by SA Health – one for day 1 and one for day 6.

SA has secured 10 million rapid antigen tests with one million now arriving per week.

Once the new system comes into effect, if a close contact receives a positive result on day 1 they will be deemed as Covid-positive and will not require a PCR test.

Rapid antigen test collection points are still being finalised. A QR code will enter the person’s details into a SA Pathology computer system to ensure they are taken and recorded.

More than 19,000 PCR tests were conducted on Wednesday.

Mr Marshall said the lab processing time was now down to about 11.4 hours, a three-hour reduction.

He predicted SA was still weeks from the peak of the Omicron outbreak, but signs the spread was slowing were “really positive”.

He said he didn’t want to “jump the gun” but was “reasonably confident” the outbreak would peak by end of the month.

“What we’re looking at now is the doubling rate. SA has the slowest doubling rate in the country and lowest reproduction rate in the country,” he said.

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WEDNESDAY JANUARY 5 UPDATE

There are 3493 new Covid-19 cases in South Australia on Wednesday, while the number of people in hospital has risen to 125.

The number in intensive care remains at 12, with one person on a ventilator.

In a dramatic end to Premier Steven Marshall’s daily media briefing, a man with an anti-mask placard was arrested after shouting questions at the Premier and attempting to approach him.

He repeatedly resisted police orders and was eventually subdued and taken away for questioning. Read more about the incident here.

Police restrain the man on the ground. Picture: Andrew Hough

A protester is tackled after trying to gatecrash Premier Steven Marshall's daily Covid press conference. Picture: Andrew Hough

Premier Steven Marshall said 50 per cent of those in the ICU were unvaccinated – a massive over-representation of those with serious symptoms considering nearly 90 per cent of the state’s population is fully vaccinated.

“The critical message for South Australia is vaccination is crucial – please go and get those jabs in the arm and those boosters. This is critical to make sure we save lives in SA,” Mr Marshall said.

There were 21,097 tests on Tuesday.

SA Health has 271 workers who have contracted the virus.

Mr Marshall said testing for close contacts would soon move from a PCR test to a free rapid antigen test for people who are not symptomatic.

“We will evolve to a RAT test ... so in the next couple of days we’ll be messaging how this will be implemented,” he said.

On Wednesday the Prime Minister announced there would be 10 free RAT tests for those on concession cards, a joint federal and state initiative.

The Premier welcomed the move.

“This is a big win for low income earners, our veterans and our senior South Australians who now have the peace of mind that if they need to access a Rapid Antigen Test – they can – free,” he said.

“Since day 1, we have made PCR testing free across the state and that will continue for people with Covid symptoms and close contacts of people with Covid.”

The subsidised tests would be available in two weeks, and information about where to get them would be available on sa.gov.au.

Mr Marshall also said several new testing sites would be opening soon.

The latest heatmap of cases around Adelaide shows the outbreak has spread across the city. Several council areas now have an active case load higher than one case for every 50 residents.

Robe will have a new Covid-19 walk-in testing site from Thursday, until next Thursday.

The Robe Football Club will be open for PCR tests, from 8.30am to noon and 1pm to 4.30pm, as the community experiences an increase in confirmed cases.

As of Wednesday evening, Robe District Council had 84 active cases of Covid-19. Wattle Range Council had 62 cases, while Naracoorte and Lucindale Council recorded 86.

The Kingston local government area had 26 active cases.

SA Premier Steven Marshall. Picture: Emma Brasier

TUESDAY JANUARY 4 UPDATE

South Australia recorded 3246 new Covid cases on Tuesday, with 102 patients in hospital.

There are now 12 patients in ICU, one of whom requires a ventilator, Premier Steven Marshall said on Tuesday. Cases in the prison system increased from 90 to 128.

“We have 102 people in hospital in South Australia at the moment but that is well within our capacity,” Mr Marshall said.

He said 30-40 per cent of patients in hospital with Covid were not fully vaccinated, compared with about 10 per cent in the wider community, “so it’s a massive misrepresentation”.

There were 20,856 tests on Monday and Mr Marshall said there had been an uptick in people getting vaccinated after a festive season slowdown.

Tuesday’s numbers are a significant increase in new cases compared to Monday’s figure of 2552.

Mr Marshall said test results were taking shorter time to process – dropping from 26 hours to 18. “You’re waiting five days in Victoria for a result – you’re not waiting five days in SA,” he said.

Mr Marshall said there were currently 102 people in the state’s medi-hotels, mostly infectious people who can’t isolate at home. They include at least two infectious tennis player support staffers, here for the international event at Memorial Drive, who are isolating in the Pullman.

He defended SA Pathology after it misplaced a container filled with Covid swabs, saying it appeared to be a simple logistical error.

Police Commissioner and state co-ordinator Grant Stevens, who has contracted Covid, is continuing to work and Mr Marshall said “he’s a pretty stoic individual ... he’s got very mild symptoms”.