Christmas Islanders ‘gobsmacked’ over coronavirus quarantine plan

Residents are seething after Scott Morrison announced plans to send Wuhan evacuees to the island.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison pictured at Flying Fish Cove wharf on Christmas Island last year. Picture: Adam Taylor

Christmas Island residents are seething after Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the government would be evacuating Australian’s from China’s coronavirus-plagued Hubei province and quarantining them on the island.

Respected local Islamic community leader, Zainal Majid, said Christmas Island is no place for the deadly disease.

“I’m sure the residents would be concerned,” Mr Majid said. “The island is a pretty small place, “Something that is so negative like this virus… why should the island have to cop it?

“I’ve heard an Australian medical team has managed to replicate the virus, but they haven’t managed to develop a vaccine yet. A vaccine would be better,” he said.

Australian scientists have had a breakthrough in the fight against coronavirus – developing a lab-grown version of the disease – believed to be the first copy of the virus outside of China.

It’s hoped it could help speed up the development of a vaccine to combat the deadly virus.

Mr Majid is currently on holiday in Perth with his family, but with a return flight to the island booked for Tuesday, he said they would have no option but to return home.

“We live there (Christmas Island) so we have no choice. But we don’t want to have this issue with the virus on the island and not controlled,” he added.

Roughly 400 Australians have registered for evacuation from Wuhan as the death rate from the disease continues to climb.

The coronavirus has caused 132 deaths so far, and there are currently 6000 confirmed cases worldwide.

Local business owner Sharon Tisdale has lived on Christmas Island for 13 years and said she was “gobsmacked” when she first heard the news.

“The island is just getting back on its feet, tourism is picking up again, and now we’ve gone from a detention island to a quarantine island,” Ms Tisdale said.

“I think it’s pretty ordinary saying it (the government) wants to protect Australians. Well guess what, the people on Christmas Island are Australian citizens too,” she said.

Ms Tisdale acknowledged Christmas Island seemed like “the convenient option”, but expressed her concern for people on the island, as well as those considering visiting.

“We have so many young children, many recently born children, we have a lot of people with compromised health. What happens to the staff? Are they also quarantined at the centre? Will we be able to fly off the island or are we also a quarantine risk? These are all issues that worry us,” Ms Tisdale said.

“Anyone who speaks about Christmas Island back on the mainland says ‘why would you want to go there, it’s a detention island’. Now we have to deal with this. Who wants to come to a quarantine island?

“You put your trust in the government because you believe they’re doing what’s in Australians’ best interest. That’s gone out the window now,” she said.

Mr Morrison stressed there would be support for Christmas Island residents.

“We will be ensuring there will be support provided directly to the Christmas Island community, completely separate and quarantined from the support that is being provided in the quarantine zone,” Mr Morrison said.

“The defence forces have been tasked to identify overflow facilities where that may be necessary, and also to provide whatever logistical and other support is necessary,” he added.

Evacuees will be quarantined on the island for a fortnight, which is a period in line with medical advice.

Christmas Island, closer to Jakarta than Broome, became an Australian territory in 1958. It currently has a population of around 1800 and covers 135 square kilometres.