I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here worker who caused Tweed, Byron lockdown charged over alleged Covid breaches
A film crew member allegedly attended several businesses and venues in Byron Bay and Kingscliff over the weekend in breach of her exemption and failed to check in with QR codes.
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A crew member for reality television program I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here has been charged after sparking a lockdown in the Tweed and Byron Shires.
Officers from Tweed/Byron Police District began inquiries on Tuesday, after they received information a woman from Greater Sydney had travelled to the area and since tested positive for Covid-19.
Inquiries revealed the 31-year-old woman had been granted an exemption to travel to the area for work-related purposes only.
She allegedly attended several businesses and venues in Byron Bay and Kingscliff over the weekend, which was in breach of the conditions of her exemption.
Further, she failed to check-in at those locations using the QR codes.
The Rushcutters Bay woman was issued with a Court Attendance notice on Wednesday, for five counts of fail to comply with electronic registration directive.
She is due to appear before Tweed Heads Local Court on Monday November, 8.
At a Wednesday press conference, Premier Gladys Berejiklian confirmed there have been no new cases in Northern NSW overnight as she refuted flaws with the travel exemption system.
Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said the woman was recently vaccinated, but that the vaccination mightn’t have had time to “take effect”.
Byron Shire mayor Michael Lyon said the news of a positive Sydneysider case coming into the region was a bitter blow.
“Our local community is once again paying the price for the lack of consideration as to how Covid can spread to the regions,” he said.
“People are allowed to leave Sydney for a range of reasons and I think it’s time the NSW Government looked very closely at further tightening these rules that are allowing people to travel or, at the very least, restricting their movements while they are here.
“We have been placed on an ambitious timetable of mid-October of a statewide opening up, for economic not health reasons, which leaves our community and region exposed and without any consultation, or the supply of vaccines to be able to prepare for it.
“This needs to be reconsidered and more widely consulted on.”
During the Wednesday press conference, Ms Berejiklian again pointed to Byron and Mullumbimby’s “pockets of resistance” as an answer for the region’s low vaccination rates.
Ms Chant said she would like to see more community engagement to encourage vaccination and hoped the latest lockdown would bring home the message.
“This gives them the warning no one can be complacent,” she said.
Meanwhile, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk showed no signs of easing border restrictions when asked about the Wallangarra/Jennings border business divide at a Toowoomba press conference.
“Yeah and guess what, we’ve also been trying to move the checkpoints of the Tweed,” she said.
“Unfortunately these are matters for the NSW government because they are NSW residents”
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