Queensland scrambles to test for emergence of PNG COVID-19 variant

Queensland Health is investi­gating the possible emergence of a Papua New Guinea variant of COVID.

Rosie Gibuma receives the vaccine at the Boigu Island community centre from Queensland Health nurse Ruth Ferguson. Picture: Getty Images

Queensland Health is investi­gating the possible emergence of a Papua New Guinea variant of COVID, as the surging number of cases of the virus has reached villages a few kilometres from Australia’s northernmost islands.

Three positive COVID cases have been confirmed in the South Fly district, part of the Western Province that includes the town of Daru, and the so-called Treaty Villages on the PNG side of the Torres Strait.

PNG’s total coronavirus caseload surged by 351 according to the country’s latest national COVID bulletin, which is likely to dramatically under-report the number of positive cases due to low testing rates.

Western Province had 166 new cases in the 24 hours to noon on Tuesday, bringing its total caseload to 786.

The latest update came as a shipment of 8000 AstraZeneca jabs provided by Australia arrived in the country to allow vaccin­ations for frontline medical staff.

Australia has also pledged to vaccinate Treaty Villages residents, and has started vaccin­ations for Torres Strait islanders in recognition of their proximity to PNG and familial links to those on the northern side of the border.

A Queensland Health spokeswoman on Wednesday night said state authorities were conducting tests to determine whether there was a new variant of the virus.

Genomic testing has been conducted on COVID cases that had already arrived in Queensland and were detected in quarantine.

There are now 67 active cases of COVID-19 in Queensland hospitals, 42 of which are from PNG.

At the height of the COVID crisis on March 23, 2020, Queensland had 76 active cases. There are now more active cases in Queensland than any other state. Lowy Institute researcher Shane Mc­Leod said the scale of the outbreak in Western Province was particularly alarming.

“Until now, most of the cases seem to have been from the North Fly region, home to the Ok Tedi mine.

“The bigger concern for Australia from this data will be the three cases in the South Fly.

“It suggests the virus is now present in the district that adjoins the Torres Strait. It shows why vaccination in Torres Strait island communities is so important, and shows why getting vaccine support into the PNG side of the border is so ­critical.”

PNG’s official COVID case count is more than 4000 but there are believed to be many more than that, with hundreds of new cases being identified daily.

Allan Bird, governor of the East Sepik province in the country’s northeast, said local public and private hospitals “are full of COVID-19 patients”.

“There is no more space; ­people are taking oxygen on the floor.

“They are now discussing opening up the Aquatic Centre as an emergency treatment facility for COVID-19.’’

In a statement, Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said the vaccination of residents of the Torres Strait Islands was critical in the face of the threat of the virus from PNG. “The vaccine rollout in the Torres Strait is ­crucial, given the escalating number of cases we’re seeing in PNG,’’ she said.

“We’re working closely with these local communities to encourage a widespread uptake of the vaccine.

“Providing the vaccine to as many Torres Strait residents as possible is an essential part of Queensland’s fight against COVID-19.”