Covid Qld: WA Premier unapologetic over backpacker

The West Australian Premier has defended sending a Covid-positive man back to Queensland, saying WA was ‘very vigilant about what’s going on in the east’.

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan has defended sending the man who sparked Queensland’s latest Covid-19 crisis back to the Sunshine State, saying the west was “one of the freest, most successful, happiest places in the world” and was doing all it could to keep the virus out.

The man became the centre of Brisbane’s backpacker hostel scare and triggered a contact tracing emergency after being refused entry to WA despite completing hotel quarantine in Queensland and returning three negative Covid-19 tests.

He had arrived in Brisbane from the Philippines via Papua New Guinea on July 3, completed two weeks’ quarantine at the Quest Apartments Hotel and then flew to WA.

But he was denied entry and placed on a return flight to Queensland after his entry pass to WA was ruled invalid.

The man became unwell after checking into the City Backpackers in Brisbane’s CBD and tested positive to the Alpha variant of Covid-19 on Monday.

The hostel and neighbouring Joe’s Place Backpackers was placed in lockdown under police guard, with urgent testing of the 62 occupants under way.

Police stand guard outside Joe's Backpackers and City Backpackers HQ in Brisbane yesterday. Picture: Tara Croser

Contact tracers were also scrambling to track down passengers and crew who were on Qantas flight 932 from Perth to Brisbane with the man.

Fifty-nine people from the Roma St backpackers had been tested yesterday, with all testing negative including the man’s two roommates.

Frequent tests will continue until the hostel is deemed safe.

Mr McGowan said: “We don’t want to get in the position of the other states.

“We are very, very vigilant about what’s going on over east and what’s going on in the ships and what’s going on in the (quarantine) hotels and people returning from overseas.”

Queensland Health authorities said the man contracted the virus en route from the Philippines to Brisbane in early July.

Genomic sequencing identified his case as a direct match with those of three other travellers, unknown to him, who were on the same two flights from Manila to Port Moresby and Port Moresby to Brisbane.

Queensland Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said. “We realise that is a longer incubation period than we would normally expect, but we know around 1 per cent of people can have an incubation period longer than 14 days, as has happened with this gentleman.”

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan yesterday. Picture: Matt Jelonek/Getty Images