Premier Steven Marshall: What we do in the next six days will determine whether we dodge a second wave

The whole state must support this six-day lockdown so we can avoid a COVID-19 second wave, writes Premier Steven Marshall.

COVID-19 has swept back into South Australia, posing our greatest health challenge in generations.

What we do for the next six days will determine if we are to successfully stare down the threat posed by this outbreak of COVID-19. We need to stay at home to isolate the virus, to break the chain of transmission and contain this cluster.

We need a circuit breaker to protect the elderly, the vulnerable and our entire community from this nasty disease. We won’t get a second chance to prevent a second wave.

Our decision to go hard and go early to contain this outbreak is based on the advice of our world-class health team.

Even before COVID-19 first entered our state in February, our public health experts have been planning for every scenario.

Public health experts including chief public health officer Nicola Spurrier have been planning for every scenario since the first outbreak in February. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Mariuz

We have faced the threat of COVID-19 clusters with the Thebarton, Airport and Barossa clusters before and we have stamped it out every time.

This was not luck – it was achieved backing our outstanding health experts, a first-class health system that has helped keep SA safe and strong, and an incredible community who are willing to play their part to achieve the greater good. The lessons of surging infections in Victoria and other parts of the world have been learnt.

Indecision plays into the hands of the virus. COVID-19 is highly infectious, extremely dangerous and very difficult to eradicate once it gets a foothold in a community.

With worldwide infections rates surging to 600,000 per day and total deaths reaching 1.34 million people there is no room for indecision.

We are going hard and going early. No effort will be spared to slow and stop the spread of this cluster.

Pausing community activity will significantly reduce the risk of the virus spreading further. Curtailing community activity immediately will provide our testing and tracing team with the best possible opportunity to track down and stamp out this infection.

We need the opportunity to identify and isolate those who have come into contact with the virus.

Our contact-tracing team is working around the clock to track down every person who has been exposed to infection from this cluster.

This world-class effort, by highly trained professionals, has already achieved outstanding results.

I’m so proud of South Australians’ response to this latest outbreak.

More than 4000 South Australians have already gone into quarantine to reduce the circulation of the virus.

The record testing rates we have seen across the past few days will be critical in our efforts to reign the virus in.

The fact people are waiting patiently for hours to get tested highlights the strength of community spirit in SA.

People have lined up for hours to get tested for COVID-19. Picture: Tait Schmaal.

That collective effort is making the world of difference as to how we are going to get through this.

I know the restrictions we have put in place will be challenging for many South Australians.

As a community we have already endured deep economic and social hardship since the emergence of the virus at the beginning of the year.

This six-day pause in community activity will bring additional difficulties for more South Australians.

But we can, and we must, follow the expert health advice to keep SA safe and strong. The alternative is the virus escapes into the wider community and we are forced into an extended lockdown to bring it under control.

The fact that we have caught the cluster early and traced the existing links gives us the opportunity to stop the transmission of the virus if we move quickly, and avoid a longer lockdown or restrictions.

This is about SA pausing so that we stay ahead of the virus.

I ask everyone to be patient, to follow the restrictions that have been put in place and stay positive.

I truly thank all South Australians for their support and co-operation.

Together we will get through this because South Australians are resilient, sensible and care for each other.

We may be physically distanced, but I believe we have never been more united.