Decision soon on Greater Brisbane status: NT Health Minister

UPDATE: Travellers from Byron Bay, Greater Brisbane councils and Gladstone will now be required to get a COVID-19 test within 72 hours

UPDATE: Travellers from Byron Bay, Greater Brisbane councils and Gladstone will now be required to get a COVID-19 test within 72 hours and self-isolate until a negative result is returned.

The requirement is for anyone who has been in the Brisbane, Ipswich, Moreton Bay, Logan, Redland and Gladstone local government areas since March 25, and the Byron Bay council area since March 27.

The decision was made by the Chief Health Officer.

EARLIER: The fate of passengers aboard two Darwin-bound flights from Brisbane is still up in the air, with meetings being held right now to whether to declare the Queensland capital a hot spot.

Chief Health Officer Hugh Heggie on Monday morning expanded COVID-19 testing requirements for those people who have arrived in the Northern Territory from areas in Queensland and New South Wales following several new cases.

Dr Heggie has directed all people who arrived in the Northern Territory from the City of Ipswich, Logan City, Redland City and Gladstone Region local government areas since March 25, or from Byron Shire Council in New South Wales since March 27, to self-quarantine and get a COVID-19 test in the next 72 hours.

These people must remain in self-quarantine until a negative test is returned.

These expanded testing requirements are in addition to testing requirements for people who have arrived in the Northern Territory from March 20 from the City of Brisbane and Moreton Bay Region local government areas to self-quarantine and get tested.

Anyone who has arrived in the NT from these areas between March 12 and 11:59pm on March 19, and who are showing any symptoms of COVID-19, must self-quarantine and get tested.

This does not include those people who transited through Brisbane Airport.

It comes amid a major outbreak of the highly-contagious UK-strain of COVID-19 in Brisbane, with four new locally acquired cases announced by Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk this morning.

Ms Palaszczuk said the local government areas of Brisbane, Moreton Bay, Ipswich, Redlands and Logan will enter lockdown at 5pm today.

Health Minister Natasha Fyles. Picture Glenn Campbell

Speaking on Monday from Alice Springs, Health Minister Natasha Fyles said Dr Heggie was receiving advice today.

“(NT chief health officer Hugh Heggie) is in AHPPC right now, I spoke to him this morning, so we will get that latest advice,” Ms Fyles said.

“It is of course concerning to see 10 cases in Queensland,” she said.

“Following AHPPC today, we will provide further updates to the community.”

Two flights from Brisbane were scheduled to touch down in Darwin at 12.10pm and 1.40pm on Monday.

Whether Brisbane is declared a hotspot by then will determine whether passengers will be bussed to Howard Springs or not.

“If we have to declare a hot spot, whether planes are in the air or not, we will follow that clinical advice to keep Territorians safe,” Ms Fyles said.

“We know it’s frustrating, we know it has an impact on people, but what would have a larger impact is if we were to see coronavirus come into our community,” she said.

“It only takes one case, and that’s what we’re learning right now from Queensland.”

Arrivals from Brisbane are currently required to self-isolate until they receive a negative COVID-19 test.

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Among those infected is a nurse who worked at the Princess Alexandra Hospital on Brisbane’s southside, who had not yet been vaccinated.

Two of the cases confirmed today are believed to have travelled to Byron Bay in northern New South Wales, while another visited Gladstone in central Queensland.

Tasmania this morning declared Greater Brisbane a hotspot, while Western Australia tightened border restrictions over the weekend.