Byron Bay has been declared a hotspot by the Northern Territory as the list of venues impacted by a growing COVID cluster continues to expand.
Byron Bay has been declared a hotspot by the Northern Territory as the list of venues impacted by a growing COVID cluster continues to expand.
Meanwhile, residents of greater Brisbane are facing the possibility of spending their second Easter in a row in lockdown, as two "concerning" clusters continue to grow.
Eight new COVID-19 cases were detected in the community as of today, and health authorities now believe the 15 locally acquired cases of recent weeks are related to two "distinct" clusters, both of which have originated from the Princess Alexandra Hospital.
This morning, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk would not rule out the possibility the lockdown could be extended, potentially through the Easter long weekend.
"In terms of the greater Brisbane region, we just have to take this day-by-day," she said.
This blog is now finished for the day. Read on for earlier live updates or visit our homepage to read about the latest Queensland outbreak updates and full list of alerts for NSW and Queensland.
Another Woolworths store is on Queensland Health's 'get tested immediately' list.
It comes after 15 more locations were added to the growing list, on Tuesday, after they had been visited by people who have since been diagnosed with COVID-19.
There is now a total of five Woolworths stores on the list with locations including Cleveland, Coorparoo and Southport Park, along with an Aldi in Bald Hills.
You can find a full list of all the venues here.
The Mater Mothers’ Hospital in South Brisbane has sent staff home after it was discovered a recent visitor was one of the state's recent confirmed COVID-19 cases.
According to the ABC, the person visited a floor in the private maternity section, as well as a nearby coffee shop frequented by staff.
The Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane has been put into an emergency lockdown, with staff ordered to get tested for coronavirus.
The hospital is currently only taking critical patients, according to reports.
At least one new COVID-19 case has been recorded today and is linked to the hospital.
Read our full coverage here.
The Queensland woman who says Liberal MP Andrew Laming took a photo of her bottom without her consent has given a formal complaint to the state's police.
The disgraced MP allegedly took a photograph of a Brisbane woman’s bottom without her consent, while she was on her knees stacking a bar fridge.
"A formal complaint has now been received from a 29-year-old woman in regards to an alleged matter which occurred in 2019," a Queensland Police Service spokesperson said in a statement tonight.
"This matter is being assessed by detectives from Cleveland."
Picture: AAP Image/Glenn Hunt
Dr Laming — a trained doctor — has been slammed as “a perv” for taking the photo by another man who worked at the landscaping business, but the MP has insisted he did not do it with malicious intent and deleted it as soon as he was asked.
Hitting back at his critics, the MP said his tough questions to constituents on Facebook were being “reinvented as harassment” and challenged those who claimed he hid in bushes to take a photo of a female state Labor MP to “show me the bush!”
He said there were “no bushes in that park, only ground cover and I was standing with my family taking a photograph of them.”
Forecasters are warning it could be a soggy Easter in the country’s east and south west while the Top End and north west Western Australia may need to start hunkering down for a coming cyclone.
“We could see an increase in rain through the Easter weekend,” said Sky News Weather meteorologist Ron Sharpe.
That could be concentrated around the Queensland and northern New South Wales coasts as well as the Northern Territory.
Picture: Sky News Weather
But if you’re in Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania or much of Western Australia, sunshine and pleasant weather is likely to be on the menu for Easter lunch.
A high pressure system over southern Australia will should lead to generally fine and mild conditions over much of the country leading into the Easter weekend.
Anyone who has been to the following locations on the Gold Coast at the time and date listed should get tested immediately and isolate until a negative result is received:
NSW's Byron Shire has been declared a hot spot by the Northern Territory, prompting the Top End to shut its border to the region.
Anyone who has arrived in the NT after 4:30pm local time today will be required to go into mandatory, supervised quarantine.
Byron Bay was placed on alert after several popular venues were visited by a confirmed case of COVID-19 linked to the growing clusters in Queensland.
Anyone who has been in the NT who has been in Byron Shire since March 26 is also required to self-isolate for 14 days.
The move comes after the Territory announced Brisbane, Ipswich, Toowoomba, Logan, Redland City and the Moreton Bay region as hot spots yesterday.
Two venues in Toowoomba, in Queensland's south east, have been added to Queensland Health's list of venues visited by a confirmed case of COVID-19.
If you were at Jamaica Blue Cafe, Middle Ridge on Friday, March 26 between 10.30am and 12pm, you must get tested and isolate immediately for 14 days, regardless of your test result.
If you were at The Ridge Shopping Centre, Middle Ridge on Friday, March 26 between 10.30am and 12.15pm, you must get tested and isolate until you receive a negative result.
NSW Health has issued new advice on venues of alert in the state's north, after they were visited by confirmed cases of COVID-19 linked to the current Queensland outbreaks.
GET TESTED, QUARANTINE FOR 14 DAYS REGARDLESS OF RESULT
GET TESTED, ISOLATE UNTIL A NEGATIVE RESULT IS RECEIVED
An elite private boys school in Western Australia has banned the mullet hairstyle after deeming the hairdo “not acceptable”.
Trinity College in Perth outlined their ban on the retro haircut in its recent newsletter.
“It is without reservation that the College sets clear requirements that ensure health and safety, as well as setting a high standard for personal presentation,” the newsletter states.
Picture: Ernie McLintock Real Estate
“The current trend of growing the hair at the back of the head and/or closely cropping the sides of the head to accentuate the ‘mullet’ style are untidy, non-conventional and not acceptable at Trinity College. As is the trend of long hair and fringes.
“The College expectations on hair styles can be found on Page 18 of the Student Diary.”
Students who don’t meet the school’s grooming standards will be picked up by their parents and ordered to get a haircut.
Annabel Sutherland’s record-shaping century at the MCG has put Australia on the cusp of an Ashes clean sweep.
Western Sydney returned to winning form in Brisbane but it was victory marred by an injury to the club’s biggest star.
Emergency services have deployed multiple water rescue crews as torrential rain and flash flooding smashes one Aussie city.
Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/national/breaking-news/live-breaking-news/live-coverage/e694a2302aa86a02a88784aaccef55d0