Driver’s COVID fears after breath test with police not wearing masks
A former federal politician has slammed police for not wearing masks or cleaning machines while conducting roadside breath testing.
Logan
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A Logan man has slammed police for not wearing masks while conducting roadside breath tests this morning.
Former federal MP for Forde Brett Raguse said an officer was centimetres from his face and put his hand inside his car when he was pulled over at a random breath testing station on Queens Rd at Slacks Creek this morning.
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“I felt really … confronted and at risk,” Mr Raguse said.
“I have no problem with random breath testing but during a pandemic, it should be safe and officers should be wearing masks and the machines should be thoroughly cleaned after each person breathes over them.
“Officers were only wearing the disposable gloves, which is okay but I believe if they are coming in contact with lots of people they need better protective gear for them and those being tested.”
Mr Raguse said the police left some disposable gloves on the footpath after packing up and leaving the site.
His comments came after a weekend in which residents took to social media to complain about the lack of social distancing at various centres across Logan including the Windaroo Tavern, where police were called after a fight broke out on Saturday night.
Police said testing at the Queens Rd site, near the shops, was routine.
Queensland Health said it was a matter for Queensland Police.
On Sunday, Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young urged people to wear masks and continue working from home amid fears a COVID-19 cluster in the state’s southeast would grow this week.
“This is the time to get out those flat surgical masks … or if you’ve made masks with three layers of thickness,” she said on Sunday.
“It’s really time to start using them.”
Dr Young said the mandatory wearing of face masks would not be implemented “for a while” but acknowledged there may be a time when they will be.
“I’m not confident the cluster is completely contained,” she said.
Dr Young said the community risk had not grown, but declared Queenslanders needed to be “ultra cautious” to stop the southside COVID-19 cluster spiralling out of control.
Health Minister Steven Miles said on Monday there was one new case of the virus in the state overnight.
He said it was linked to the cases at the Queensland Corrective Services Academy.
On Sunday the Fig Tree Pocket Early Childhood Centre and Staines Memorial College at Redbank Plains went into lockdown.
A child at the preschool and a student at the school – known contacts to positive cases – both tested positive to the virus.
Staines Memorial College at Redbank Plains has undergone deep cleaning and is expected to remain closed on Monday after the senior student was infected.