Queensland records one new local Covid-19 case as investigations into hotel spread

As Queensland health authorities race to figure out how the virus spread throughout a hotel quarantine facility, the state has recorded one new local case.

Queensland health authorities believe a fully vaccinated staff member “could have transmitted” Covid-19 between two guests staying on different floors at a hotel quarantine facility.

It comes as one new case of locally acquired Covid-19 was detected overnight, but at this stage authorities are confident it is linked to the flight attendant who contracted the virus at the Four Points Hotel, as announced on the weekend.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the man, in his 60s, had been at the Portuguese Family Centre at the same time as the woman on Saturday night.

“We’re going to make sure we are keeping a close eye on everyone who went to that centre, we don’t want them in the community,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

It comes as health authorities try to piece together how the virus spread throughout different floors of Four Points, used exclusively for airline staff.

Four Point Sheraton in Mary street was the hotel where two flight attendants have now tested positive were staying at in hotel quarantine. Picture: David Clark

The woman who tested positive on Saturday, a flight attendant in her 30s who arrived from Portugal, contracted the virus from another airline crew member who arrived on a different flight and was staying on a separate floor of the hotel.

Genomic sequencing has linked the two together, and both have the Alpha strain.

How the virus spread is the subject of investigation, but Australia’s chief medical officer has suggested it could be a “world first”.

chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said investigations are ongoing into how the vaccine spread through a hotel. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

But speaking on Tuesday, Queensland’s chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said the preliminary work indicated there was a quarantine staff member “potentially involved”.

“We know that this staff member escorted one positive case from Mongolia from their room to an ambulance to take them to hospital,” Dr Young said.

“Then that same staff member, who was fully vaccinated, as was the patient, we know after escorting the gentleman she went up to a higher level in the building and swabbed the lady who came from Portugal.

“She has ended up with exactly the same strain of the virus as the gentleman from Mongolia.

“We are thinking that through fomite transmission, that staff member has transported the virus from the gentleman to the lady.”

Dr Young and Health Minister Yvette D’Ath have also urged Queenslanders against travelling to New South Wales, but the border to Greater Melbourne will reopen on Friday.

Queensland recorded two new cases in hotel quarantine on Tuesday.