More COVID fragments found in Airlie Beach sewage

‘A positive sewage result means that someone who has been infected was shedding the virus’

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young. (News Corp/Attila Csaszar)

More coronavirus fragments have been detected in Airlie Beach as Queensland Health again urges residents to get tested if showing any symptoms.

The viral fragment was detected in the sample from Cannonvale taken last week.

It is one of three positive samples across Queensland, with samples from Merrimac on the Gold Coast and Cairns North also testing positive.

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said Queensland Health was “treating these detections seriously” but it did not mean new positive COVID-19 cases were in those communities.

“A positive sewage result means that someone who has been infected was shedding the virus,” she said.

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“Infected people can shed viral fragments and that shedding can happen for several weeks after the person is no longer infectious.”

The samples were collected from the wastewater treatment plants last week.

“I continue to urge anyone who feels unwell in these communities to get tested and isolate,” Dr Young said.

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“Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, fatigue, diarrhoea, nausea or vomiting, and loss of taste or smell.

“If there is a case we are not yet aware of, it is critical we detect it through our testing mechanisms as quickly as possible to contain any potential spread.”

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