Man injured while attempting to flee hotel quarantine by jumping from balcony in Cairns

A Victorian man plunged from the balcony of a hotel quarantine facility in Queensland while trying to escape, health authorities have said.

A Victorian man has suffered leg injuries while trying to escape hotel quarantine after he plunged from the balcony of a facility in Queensland.

The 29-year-old attempted to flee the site in Cairns about 11am on Friday, having only been shipped into the facility earlier in the morning, police told NCA NewsWire.

It was alleged the interstate traveller attempted to scale the outside of the undisclosed hotel before tumbling from the building.

The state’s chief health officer, Dr Jeannette Young, said the man was transported to the Cairns Hospital with minor leg injuries.

“Apparently a gentleman did try to climb out of the balcony that they were on and then fell,” she said.

“He was taken to the Cairns Base Hospital and I understand he does have some injuries.”

RELATED: Couple who left Melbourne lockdown fined

Dr Young said the man suffered injuries during the attempted escape. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

The man will now be investigated and could be slapped with a hefty fine for failing to comply with Covid-19 health directives.

The alleged great escape comes on the same day a penalty was handed down to the couple who fled Melbourne during the city’s lockdown and drove into Queensland before testing positive to Covid-19.

The duo were slapped with a $4000 fine after they travelled through NSW and on to the Sunshine Coast earlier this month without a travel exemption.

Once they were released, the couple in their 40s were questioned by police, who accused the duo of deliberately providing false information to obtain a Queensland border declaration pass.