Open door in Adelaide led to Covid-19 outbreak

An open door at an Adelaide quarantine hotel has been identified as the likely source of Covid-19 transmission from one infected guest to another.

Adelaide’s Playford Hotel. Picture: Brenton Edwards

An open door at an Adelaide quarantine hotel has been identified as the likely source of Covid-19 transmission from one infected guest to another in a breach which has been blamed for starting the Melbourne outbreak.

The revelation has prompted an overhaul of the manner in which people in hotel quarantine receive food and other deliveries to prevent airborne transmission of the virus.

In a brief three-page report, SA Health has blamed the opening of a door between two neighbouring rooms at Adelaide’s Playford Hotel for the suspected aerosol transmission of Covid-19 from an infected guest known as Case B to a second guest known as Case A.

The report came as SA slammed shut its border to residents of Melbourne from 6pm and as hundreds of Port Adelaide supporters were ordered to self-isolate for a fortnight after sitting near an infected person at Sunday’s Port-Collingwood game at the MCG.

SA chief health officer Professor Nicola Spurrier confirmed last night that three of those people are considered close contacts of the infected person at the MCG and urged all South Australians to remain vigilant.

In a complex thread of transmission, the SA Health report explains how four people all contracted the virus through a combination of shared accommodation and air travel.

Case B became ill with Covid on May 3 and Case A on May 8, both with the Indian strain of the virus now threatening to force a major lockdown in Melbourne.

Case B caught the virus from a man known as Case C, with whom he was sharing a room at the Playford before being moved to Adelaide’s dedicated Tom’s Court medi-hotel on April 29 after testing positive.

A fourth man, Case D, tested positive for the virus in Victoria after flying from Singapore to Melbourne and having taken a previous flight from the Maldives to Singapore alongside Cases A, B and C.

The SA Health report documents two occasions where the adjoining rooms housing Cases A and B were open for deliveries.

Case A had completed 14 days quarantine in SA and tested negative for Covid on days one, five and 13, and subsequently went to Victoria, where upon feeling unwell had another Covid test and this time tested positive 22 days after returning from overseas.

According to SA Health, Case A may have contracted the virus after their hotel room door was open within 30 minutes of Case B’s door being opened, believed to be for a food delivery.

“Case B opening their door could have resulted in potentially contaminated corridor air either directly exposing Case A or forcing contaminated air into his room, particularly given Case B’s room was situated at the end of a corridor and the intervening time period may not have allowed exchange of fresh air to have occurred despite adequate ventilation levels in the corridor,” the report states.

“There were two occasions on 3 May 2021, when entry doors opened within 30 minutes of each other. For example, on one occasion, Case B opened his room door to collect his meal, then 18 seconds later Case A opened his door to collect his meal. This was during the time Case B was infectious but prior to staff knowing his positive Covid-19 status. A similar situation was observed again on the same day with a time lapse of less than 12 minutes.”