Brisbane lockdown: 1.5m in limbo as state on alert for outbreaks

More than 1.5 million southeast Queenslanders are waiting to see if the lockdown is lifting on Saturday, as the coronavirus situation remains in flux.

Queensland is grappling with a fast-moving coronavirus situation leaving more than 1.5 million locked-down residents in limbo amid an escalating number of community-acquired cases.

Just hours after the announcement that most of the impacted regions of Queensland would emerge from lockdown, another unlinked community acquired case was discovered on the Sunshine Coast.

It brought the total number of community cases announced on Friday to four, after a mother and daughter from Carindale on Brisbane’s southside also tested positive – with officials yet to work out how they contracted the virus.

Another man – an airport baggage handler who is the partner of an international airport worker whose case was announced on Thursday – had a positive serology test come back, but has since recovered.

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young yesterday. Picture: Tertius Pickard/NCA NewsWire

The cases have forced health officials to extend the three-day lockdown for another 24 hours in Brisbane and Moreton Bay, as they scramble to contact-trace.

Queensland Health late yesterday issued an alert for new exposure sites including in Griffin, Hatton Vale, North Lakes, Redcliffe, South Brisbane, Wellcamp, West End and Haigslea.

But the lockdown order has been lifted for the Gold Coast, Ipswich, Lockyer Valley, Logan, Noosa, Redlands, Scenic Rim, Somerset, Sunshine Coast, Townsville and Palm Island areas.

Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said the latest case on the Sunshine Coast – a man in his 50s who only tested positive on Friday – would not prevent the region from leaving lockdown.

“The man was only in the community while potentially infectious for two days before the lockdown began, at his workplace, and briefly during lockdown,” Dr Young said.

“Because of this, I am confident we can continue with the eased lockdown for the Sunshine Coast this afternoon, and we’ll continue to monitor the situation.”

She warned that the state was dealing with a fast-moving situation as she promised to keep the community updated as soon as possible if officials needed to change their approach.

Dr Young was first alerted to the Carindale cases via an email sent to her from the State Health Emergency Co-ordination Centre at 1.29am yesterday.

Officials were yesterday trying to determine the variants of the Sunshine Coast and Carindale cases, as well as how they contracted the virus – as they simultaneously battle multiple clusters.

Asked on Friday about whether the lockdown for Brisbane and Moreton Bay would be extended further, Dr Young said it was “too hypothetical”.

“I need to find out all this information,” she said.

“It’s too early. We’ve extended it today because of these totally unknown cases but let’s just get through today. I would hope that it doesn’t need to be extended.”

The latest cases added to the growing number of exposure sites, with new supermarkets and retail stores joining the list.

Dr Young said the Sunshine Coast man had worked at the Sippy Downs campus of the University of the Sunshine Coast on June 28 and June 29.

Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall was deserted yesterday. Picture: Tertius Pickard/NCA NewsWire

“He had minimal contact with others so it will not be listed as a contact tracing site, but as always, anyone with symptoms, come forward for testing immediately,” she said.

Health Minister Yvette D’Ath urged anyone in the Caloundra, Mooloolaba, Sippy Downs or Maroochydore areas to come forward for testing if they were unwell with even the slightest symptoms.

She also revealed that one of the cases linked to the Portuguese restaurant cluster was now in the intensive care unit.

“Thankfully this person, I believe he’s a 69-year-old male, is not on a ventilator at this point,” Ms D’Ath said.

“Our thoughts go out to him and his family right now.”

Dr Young said with the amount of testing that had been conducted in recent days, she was “reasonably comfortable” that there was unlikely to be a significant chain of transmission within the community.

Mask-wearing will remain mandatory for those local government areas that are being taken out of lockdown, with face coverings to still be a requirement for indoor and outdoor spaces.