NT chief health officer declares 11 Queensland LGAs hotspots as of 4pm, as cluster grows

NT chief health officer Dr Hugh Heggie has declared 11 local government areas in southeast Queensland as hotspots as of 4pm Saturday, after a cluster linked to a school in the region grew to seven cases overnight.

UPDATE – 12.30PM: THE Northern Territory chief health officer Dr Hugh Heggie has declared 11 local government areas in southeast Queensland as hotspots from 4pm Saturday.

The Chief Minister’s office has told the NT News passengers aboard two flights landing before 4pm into Darwin Airport will not have to go into quarantine, but will be asked about exposure sites before leaving the terminal.

But anyone who arrives after 4pm will need to complete 14 days of mandatory isolation at Howard Springs.

It comes after seven cases of the hyper-infectious Delta variant were detected in Brisbane over the past 48 hours.

The hotspots include the local government areas of: Brisbane, Moreton Bay, the Gold Coast, Ipswich, the Lockyer Valley, Logan City, Noosa, Redland City, Scenic Rim, Somerset and the Sunshine Coast.

EARLIER:ALL eyes in the Territory have turned to chief health officer Dr Hugh Heggie as to whether he’ll declare 11 local government areas in southeast Queensland a hotspot.

It comes after six locally acquired cases of Covid-19 were detected overnight, bringing the number of infections linked to a school in Brisbane’s westside to seven.

All cases are confirmed to be the Delta variant, the same hyper-infectious strain which has spread widely in Greater Sydney.

Queensland authorities will impose the “strictest” lockdown so far in the pandemic on Greater Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast from 4pm Saturday, and will last at least three days.

Previous hotspot declarations from the Northern Territory have been made after cities have imposed lockdowns.

The NT government has been contacted for comment.

More to come.

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