Explained: Holiday Inn hotel quarantine cluster at Melbourne Airport
The Holiday Inn hotel quarantine cluster has climbed to 17 cases in one week. Here’s how the infections spread across Melbourne.
Coronavirus
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As the Holiday Inn hotel quarantine cluster continues to grow, Victorian Commander of Testing Jeroen Weimar detailed the positive cases, how and when they caught the virus and where they’ve been in the community.
The UK strain of the virus is believed to have originated from a family of three returned travellers.
Health authorities said there are now 17 cases as part of the cluster.
FAMILY OF THREE
INDEX CASE
A family of three returned travellers is believed to have contracted COVID-19 overseas and first spread the virus in the Holiday Inn hotel quarantine facility.
One family member was using a nebuliser — a machine that vaporises liquid for medicinal purposes.
The nebuliser was used in the hotel on Wednesday February 3 and Thursday February 4.
Health authorities are working on the theory the virus spread to others through tiny air particles.
Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said they believed at least three of the other cases were exposed to mist from the nebuliser in the hotel corridor.
He said exposure happened on those two days when the nebuliser was in use.
“So we think that the exposures are all [related] to that event, the use of a nebuliser, which then meant that the virus was carried out into the corridor and exposed the authorised officer, and the food and beverage service worker and also the other resident,” he said.
The person using the nebuliser is now battling coronavirus in ICU.
The other family members have been moved to a health hotel.
CASE 4: AUTHORISED OFFICER, HOLIDAY INN QUARANTINE WORKER
A woman in her early 50s who works as an authorised officer at the Holiday Inn returned a negative swab on Wednesday February 3 and Thursday February 4.
She worked a shift on Sunday February 7, started to develop symptoms and through routine testing returned a positive result on that same day.
Authorities combed “thousands of hours” of CCTV footage and found this worker had not breached quarantine protocols.
The worker visited three locations during the time they believe she was infectious, including
Marciano’s Cakes in Maidstone, Dan Murphy’s in Sunshine and Off Ya Tree Watergardens in Taylors Lakes.
The authorised officer had eight household and social contacts.
Seven tested negative and one household contact tested positive, which is case 13.
This case was already isolating from Sunday 7 February and had no exposure in the community and therefore, there were no exposure sites listed.
CASE 5: RETURNED TRAVELLER, HOLIDAY INN RESIDENT
This female hotel guest tested negative twice during her 14-day quarantine period.
She left the Holiday Inn on Sunday February 7 and contact tracers do not believe she left her house after finishing her quarantine — except to get a COVID-19 test — and had only one primary close contact.
She tested positive on Tuesday February 9 and Victorian Testing Commander Jeroen Weimar said this case had already been isolating because of advice given to her on Sunday night.
There’s been debate around whether the woman had a longer virus incubation period, or she contracted the virus inside hotel quarantine.
Prof Sutton said it was unlikely the female guest had contracted a variant of the virus with a longer incubation time.
Instead, investigators believe all the initial Holiday Inn cases are linked, and the woman was exposed to the virus just before being tested as she left quarantine, meaning the virus could not be detected until days later.
Her room was opposite that of the family of three, on the third floor of the hotel.
CASE 6: FOOD AND BEVERAGE WORKER AT HOLIDAY INN
After news of the return traveller’s positive test result, it was confirmed another hotel quarantine employee had also tested positive on Tuesday February 9.
The employee had the same exposure period as the returned traveller and had been tested due to being a contact of the authorised officer who tested positive on Sunday.
This worker developed symptoms on Saturday February 6 — and three days later tested positive.
The quarantine worker is linked to seven exposure sites in Sunbury, including Bakers Delight, a Cellabrations and a sushi store, with other patrons now being ordered to get tested and isolate for 14 days.
She had 13 social and household contacts, 12 tested negative and one household member tested positive, which is case 10. The household contact had been quarantining since 9 February.
CASE 7: FOOD AND BEVERAGE WORKER AT HOLIDAY INN
The hotel quarantine worker initially tested negative after her last shift on February 7.
She was again tested on February 9 and was isolating with her household and returned a positive result on February 10.
Her partner, case 9, has since tested positive and had a number of close contacts at the RAAF base in Point Cook and Coates Hire. They have all returned negative results.
Another household contact, case 12, tested positive and was identified as the Brunetti’s worker at Terminal 4 at Melbourne Airport.
This person also attended at function, with cases 9 and 12, on Sydney Rd in Coburg on Saturday 6 February.
30 people attended the function and were all tested and asked to isolate.
Seven people from the function returned a positive test — that’s three people from the household and four others.
Transport Minister Jacinta Allen last Thursday mentioned one of the two cases announced on Wednesday was linked to ‘unexpected’ traces of COVID-19 detected in sewerage wastewater in the Coburg, Pascoe Vale and Reservoir catchment.
CASE 8: RETURNED TRAVELLER, HOLIDAY INN RESIDENT
The returned traveller was released from the Holiday Inn hotel quarantine program on Sunday February 7. Three days later she tested positive on Wednesday February 10.
She had visited the Commonwealth and HSBC banks in Glen Waverley, and these locations have been listed as exposure sites.
Like the other returned traveller they tested positive after their 14-day mandatory quarantine periods had ended, and health authorities concluded that they were likely infected while staying at the hotel. She had three primary close contacts who all tested negative and are continuing to isolate.
CASE 9: SPOUSE OF FOOD AND BEVERAGE WORKER AT HOLIDAY INN
The partner of case 8 tested positive and had a number of close contacts at the RAAF base in Point Cook and Coates Hire. They have all returned negative results.
This person also attended at function, with cases 7 and 12, on Sydney Rd in Coburg on Saturday 6 February.
30 people attended the function and were all tested and asked to isolate.
Seven people from the function returned a positive test — that’s three people from the household and four others.
CASE 10: HOUSEHOLD CONTACT OF FOOD AND BEVERAGE WORKER
This is the household contact of case six and had been quarantining since February 9.
The only other person they had come into contact had also tested negative.
CASE 11: ASSISTANT MANAGER HOLIDAY INN
The woman tested positive on late Thursday February 11 after working at the Holiday Inn.
CASE 12: BRUNETTI’S WORKER
This is a household member of case 7, the food and beverage worker at the Holiday Inn, who worked at Brunetti’s at Terminal 4 of Melbourne Airport.
All 12 of her co-workers have tested negative.
She served 34 customers, all were tested and health authorities are waiting one outstanding test result from a customer. Most of those were from interstate, but 14 remain in Victoria.
This individual is isolating at home.
Health authorities are waiting for one test result to come back relating to this case.
A total of 1600 people were asked to isolate for 14-days after coming into contact with this worker.
This person also attended at function, with cases 7 and 9, on Sydney Rd in Coburg on Saturday 6 February.
38 people attended the function and 31 returned a negative test result. Seven people from the function returned a positive test — that’s three people from the household and four others.
CASE 13: HOUSEHOLD CONTACT OF HOLIDAY INN WORKER
A household contact of case 4, the Holiday Inn authorised officer. This case was already isolating from Sunday 7 February and had no exposure in the community and therefore, there were no exposure sites listed.
CASE 14: SOCIAL CONTACT AT COBURG PARTY
Attended the Coburg function with the three-person household on Saturday February 6.
They were listed as a social contact of the household.
All their direct contacts outside of the party were to rideshare drivers and seven household and social contacts, have all tested negative.
CASE 15: CHILD AT COBURG PARTY
Three-year-old child was confirmed as the 14th person linked to the Holiday Inn cluster on Sunday 14 February. The child was at the party. Mr Weimar said this case formed an active line of inquiry and was a priority case. The child attended Glenroy Central Kinder and Goodstart Early Learning Centre in Glenroy over three days last week.
A total of 101 primary close contacts across the two kindergartens have been isolating.
CASE 16: SOCIAL CONTACT AT COBURG PARTY
The female attended the Coburg function of Saturday February 6 and has since been connected to the Queen Victoria Market and Yarra Trams exposure sites on February 11 between 8.25am and 10.10am. This person also used the female toilets at Queen Victoria Market and that was included as an exposure site.
CASE 17: SOCIAL CONTACT AT COBURG PARTY
Was initially listed as an ‘under investigation’ case. This person attended the Coburg party on February 6 and also works with three mental health units at Broadmeadows, the Northern and Alfred Hospitals. She is asymptomatic and was swapped four times over 13th and 14th of February. She returned negative and weak positive results. Health authorities are treating this case as positive. A total of 150 close contacts, a majority staff and some patients, were listed across the three sites.
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