Three new cases of coronavirus in SA, including first to be uncovered at drive-through testing clinic
The drive-through coronavirus testing clinic has uncovered its first patient, one of three to be confirmed on Thursday. The state’s total is now at 12.
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Three new cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in South Australia bringing the tally to 12 including the first three who have recovered.
A woman aged in her 40s who was tested at the new drive-through clinic at the Repat may be the state’s first case of human-to-human transmission as authorities are still trying to ascertain her travel and contact history. Authorities say such a case would be a “turning point” as all other cases caught the disease overseas.
A couple – a man aged in his 60s and woman in her 50s – who were tested at the new Royal Adelaide Hospital COVID-19 clinic are the other cases. They had travelled extensively in Italy including Rome, Venice, Florence, Pisa and Sicily as well as Majorca, Barcelona and Marseille before arriving in Adelaide on Tuesday.
It is not known if any of the three new cases, which follow two confirmed cases on Wednesday, are South Australian residents.
All were being interviewed late on Thursday prior to being taken to quarantine in hospital, at either the RAH or Flinders Medical Centre.
Chief Public Health Officer Associate Professor Nicola Spurrier said the symptoms in all three are “very mild” and she was pleased that the couple had taken the advice to seek a test after feeling ill after travelling.
She stressed SA is still in the containment phase of the threat and there is no need to cancel public events such as Anzac Day gatherings, however this is being monitored on a daily basis and factors such as if events are outside or in confined spaces are being taken into account.
“In SA we have these 12 cases, that’s a relatively small number of people, we know where they are they are going to be isolated and my team has been doing a fantastic job of following up all the close contacts and ensuring those people are in a quarantine situation in their homes so we are still in containment,” Dr Spurrier said.
“There may come a point in the future – and people have seen news from other countries where public gatherings have been cancelled – and I am looking very closely at this sort of situation. Some of the things we could take into account are the size of those gatherings, whether they are inside or outside, and the ability of transmission to occur, as well as where we are up to with human-to-human transmission in our community.”
Dr Spurrier said Australia is at the forefront of vaccine development but these need human trials and a vaccine might be 18 months away.
Health and Wellbeing Minister Stephen Wade said the confirmed tests were a validation of rolling out test clinics.
“As of Wednesday we had 600 tests across the clinics and we continue to roll out the clinics, it is an important part of providing safety and protection for South Australians,” he said.
The couple had travelled on Etihad flights EY84 Rome-Abu Dhabi arrived March 8, EY450 Abu Dhabi-Sydney arrived March 9, and VA418 Sydney-Adelaide arrived March 10.
In the cases from Wednesday, the male in his 70s who travelled from Italy flew on Qatar Airways flight QR914 from Doha which arrived in Adelaide on March 5, while the male in his 60s who travelled from the Philippines and Thailand flew from Manila on Singapore Airlines SQ919 arriving in Singapore on March 8, and SQ279 which arrived in Adelaide also on March 8. SA Health officials are trying to locate other passengers from the flights, especially those who had been in the two rows nearest the victims.
Regional health, tourism, infrastructure spends
Small businesses, road repairs and hospital upgrades are being targeted with massive cash injections as political leaders rush to stave off an economic downturn sparked by coronavirus.
Premier Steven Marshall on Wednesday revealed the $350 million construction-focused package, most of which was expected to be spent in the next 12 months.
Mr Marshall said it would focus on “shovel-ready” projects like country road shoulder sealings, hospital improvements and other work that could start quickly.
A $15 million boost to regional health projects was unveiled.
It includes fire safety upgrades at Eudunda, Loxton and Kapunda and sterilisation facilities at Naracoorte, Kapunda and Angaston.
It also includes the installation of generators and electrical upgrades at Waikerie, Bordertown, Clare and Peterborough, and $5 million for regional aged-care facilities and other upgrades across the state.
The first projects to be unveiled as part of the stimulus plan were $22 million in “eco-tourism” initiatives announced on Sunday.
There also will be tourism and housing infrastructure spends.
Approved projects must ensure use of SA workers and materials, Mr Marshall said.
“My number one priority will always be the health, safety and welfare of SA,” he said.
“But we cannot turn our minds away from the likely economic impact.”
“There are going to be significant effects. That is going to happen without a doubt.
“This (stimulus) is an unprecedented initiative to get ahead of the game.”
He said SA was already suffering downturns in education, tourism and trade.
SA Cabinet meets again today and Monday, with tick-off on specific projects imminent.
There are expected to be a mix of new projects and others that are already on the books being brought forward, to create jobs immediately while concern over coronavirus continues to grow.
Premier cancels USA trade mission
Mr Marshall said in a statement on Thursday that he would cancel his planned US trade mission.
“Due to the rapidly evolving nature of the Coronavirus pandemic, I have decided now is not the time to be leaving the country,” he said.
He said his top priority was ensuring the health of the public and delivering the $350 stimulus package (scroll down for details).
Industry heads’ reaction
Local Government Association president Sam Telfer said councils were best placed to help with shovel-ready projects. “As the closest government to communities, councils are often best placed to deliver local infrastructure projects,” Mr Telfer said.
“Councils provide and maintain much of the infrastructure used by South Australians every day, ranging from streets and footpaths to libraries, playgrounds, sporting grounds and recreation centres.
“Funding provided to local government is more likely to be spent locally, creating jobs and supporting local businesses. By supporting local employment we can help families stay in their communities, and ensure the ongoing viability of important services.”
Civil Contractors Federation chief executive Phil Sutherland urged the Government to think big – and act quickly.
“It is a well-known fact you can build your way out of a slow economy,” Mr Sutherland said. “Now is the time for our Government to make bold decisions.” Mr Sutherland said an expansion of the Adelaide tram network, although largely ruled out by the State Government, should be a priority.
“For economic stimulus to be effective, it must occur in a timely manner,” he said.
“While we acknowledge good intentions at the political level, at the agency level the current snail’s pace of project delivery isn’t going to cut it.”
Business SA chief executive Martin Haese said a recession this year was a real danger and that local businesses were already preparing to shed staff due to coronavirus impacts.
He urged Mr Marshall to increase the infrastructure spend and further cut payroll tax.
“We would encourage the (State) Government to go further,” he said.
“During this time of profound uncertainty, the most important thing is that employers are in a position to retain their staff.
“Businesses might need to prepare themselves for a recession.”
Master Builders SA chief executive Ian Markos said spending in the housing sector delivered massive multipliers and could keep tradies, builders and contractors in work.
“Road upgrades are to be welcomed, but residential and commercial construction will deliver more ‘bang for the buck’,” he said. “The multiplier effect of this sector is massive.”
He said stamp duty exemptions for first-home buyers would be an “ideal” stimulus.
Opposition criticises package
Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas said Mr Marshall should follow the lead of former prime minister Kevin Rudd during the global financial crisis and get money straight to households.
“The Premier’s refusal to provide stimulus directly to households is a mistake because that is the quickest, most effective way to get money into our economy,” Mr Malinauskas said.
“Going hard, going early and going households is essential to deliver effective stimulus that will boost confidence in South Australia.
“We can’t wait – we need money going into the South Australian economy now.”
Mr Malinauskas will today outline an alternative stimulus package that includes immediate additional energy concession for all eligible households, stamp duty relief for first-home buyers purchasing new builds and options for affected businesses to defer all or part of their payroll tax for up to 12 months.
Mr Marshall’s stimulus package will lead to a further increase in state debt, which has already spiked amid a $12 billion infrastructure spend.
He said the State Government was determined to deal directly with the crisis, and not commit to unnecessary spending once it passed.
The Government has also virtually ruled out a return to surplus in the near future.
Virus test clinic opens at WCH
A coronavirus test clinic has opened at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital where potential victims will mix with the general public as they enter via the Kermode St entrance.
The clinic is just past the shop on the ground floor in the former fracture clinic but officials say “passing somebody casually is not considered a significant risk”.
However they have an escalation plan ready if needed to lock down the hospital to just two entrances to isolate at-risk patients.
The clinic — the fifth to open in the past week — will test children with symptoms who have travelled overseas in the past 14 days or been in contact with confirmed coronavirus victims, as well as pregnant women and the parents of children with symptoms.
Families who turn up with otherwise healthy children hoping for a precautionary check will not be tested.
If they have mild symptoms but no other risk factors such as overseas travel they will be advised to see their GP to stay at home.
The clinic staffed by paediatric nurses will open 9am-8pm, seven days a week, and officials expect initial numbers to be low but stress there is potential for it to increase significantly in coming days.
Clinics now open at the RAH, Flinders Medical Centre and Lyell McEwin have seen queues form as people rush to be tested.
The WCH clinic follows the opening of the Australian-first drive-through specimen collection station at the Repat where patients referred by a GP and are given an appointment can drive in and have throat and nose swabs taken by nurses in protective gear through the window of their car in a matter of minutes.
Clinical Director of Paediatric Medicine, Dr Gavin Wheaton, said the WCH clinic would only test people who meet the criteria.
“We are not intending to test people who are just concerned about themselves or their children, we are intending to stick to the criteria for testing,” he said. “This is a rapidly changing situation and the criteria for testing may change.”
Dr Wheaton said information from other counties suggests children are “quite mildly affected compared with adults” and early data indicates babies of pregnant women are not at particular risk.
Health Minister Stephen Wade praised health officials for their swift action in containing the spread of the disease in SA and preparing for more cases.
“It is really important that people stay calm, we’ve had instances particularly in the early stage of this outbreak where people were acting quite irrationally, particularly in relation to people of Chinese origin,” he said.
WCH chief executive Lindsey Gough said there is a likelihood of people arriving who do not need testing.
“It is not necessary to present if you are the ‘worried well’ — if you don’t have symptoms and haven’t travelled overseas in the past 14 days,” she said.
As of 5pm on Tuesday the new RAH clinic had tested 258 people since opening last Thursday while FMC had tested 66 and Lyell McEwin 72 since both opened on Monday — all are receiving lots of calls as well as people presenting who do not fit the criteria for testing.
– Brad Crouch