Covid Qld: Latest Covid case numbers on eve of border reopening

Authorities say Queensland will soon be recording hundreds of new Covid-19 cases each day, as up to 50,000 vehicles are expected to pour into Queensland from hotspots across Australia when the border reopens.

Authorities say Queensland will soon be recording hundreds of new Covid-19 cases each day, as up to 50,000 vehicles are expected to pour into Queensland from hotspots across Australia when the border reopens.

Speaking at the 10am press conference, Treasurer Cameron Dick said Queensland had 15 hours until borders reopened and communities like the Gold Coast would be at the frontline of a predicted surge in Covid cases.

“There is only one overseas acquired case in Queensland today, which is very good news, but of course, these days won’t last,” he said.

“That is going to mean more people coming to Queensland from southern states for holidays, which will be great for our tourism industry and businesses across Queensland.

“And it will mean families will be able to reunite for Christmas.

“But it also means more Covid is coming to Queensland.”

Deputy chief health officer Dr James Smith said a case explosion would be “imminent” and conceded Queensland would soon be recording new cases of Covid-19 in the hundreds, each day.

“I can’t see it being next week but it will be imminent,” he said. “This is why we’ve been saying there is no freedom day, like it is the case that we absolutely need to prepare for cases.”

The border will reopen at 1am on Monday. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

He said we absolutely need to prepare for cases. “It will be difficult, there will be strain on the health system,” he said.

“We will have cases, we are not at the point of living with Covid any time soon – it’s probably six months away before we can comfortably say that we will be living with covid.”

Mr Dick said Queensland had recorded one case detected in hotel quarantine and acquired overseas, but warned that “covid is coming”.

Dr Smith said the new case in hotel quarantine was a man aged in his 30s who had recently arrived in Australia from Nigeria.

Dr Smith said given the African connection, authorities were following his genomic sequencing results closely, with the results expected in coming days.

“We are obviously very interested in whether this may be Omicron,” he said.

Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick. Pic Annette Dew

Fully vaccinated people will be able to travel to Queensland without quarantining under certain conditions from 1am on Monday, but it comes as the Gold Coast is battling with multiple new community cases after six were detected on Friday and a seventh on Saturday.

Dr Smith said with the “next era” in the Covid pandemic coming to Queensland, it was vital people remained vigilant and got tested if they had any symptoms at all.

He urged Queenslanders to continue to use the Covid check-in app, with evidence people were “slackening off”.

“The other thing to mention for today is the QR code data, so Queensland Check in app, anecdotally we have heard that people are perhaps slackening off a little bit with regards to checking in … we really want to remind people to continue to do that.”

“Please check in, that is how Queensland health can follow up with you if the venue that you’re in happens to become an exposure site.”

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk revealed this week that travellers no longer had to wait two weeks to be considered fully vaccinated, with one week deemed enough.

“We will live with Covid – but on our terms,” she said.

Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said the border pass system would go live at various stages.

Ms Carroll said as of 8.30pm Sunday, the “X Pass” for border zone residents would go live.

She said at 10pm, the international pass would go live, while at midnight, the “G Pass” for hotspot arrivals would go live.

Dr Smith said at this stage children who are unvaccinated will have to continue to quarantine for 14 days.

He said children would not be banned from venues under the vaccine mandate, that it applied to 16 years and above.

The RACQ has urged motorists attempting to cross into Queensland on Monday to consider travelling outside of peak times to avoid the anticipated extensive gridlock at the border.

The police commissioner said there would be 20,000 to 50,000 cars at the border in the first few days.

A surge of traffic is anticipated at the Queensland border. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

“It has been very very difficult to estimate … but I could safely say anywhere from 20 to 40 or 50 thousand additional vehicles … we don’t know whether people will come immediately, or will delay their trip for a couple of days,” she said.

“The first international flight under the new system is not until tomorrow at 5pm and there is only 12 people.

“Can I ask people that you cannot come to the border until 1am under the new system, because you’re making a declaration, a legal declaration from 1am, so if you turn up beforehand it is under the old direction and you will be treated legally under that old direction, so pretty well everything happens from 1am.

“We have our technical people already on standby … I am confident that the system will handle this,” she said.

“If you’re travelling particularly in those busy periods, you can expect extensive delays, in the past we have seen delays of a couple of hours – I ask that you try and travel outside of those traditional peak hours.

“The catch phrase has been pack your patience, particularly for the first couple of days.

“There’s a combination of many, there’s definitely returning residents … we are expecting anywhere of up to 10,000 in that group alone, but certainly many many tourists … a conservative estimate over the next few days in the tens of thousands.”

Police will be doing random intercepts to ensure arrivals have the correct pass and Commissioner Carroll said there may be instances where officers would be doing “100 per cent compliance” checks.

All number plates heading across the border will be recorded so if there is an issue at any point, police can decipher when a person arrived and where they came from.

Commissioner Carroll said she “cannot wait” until the border checkpoints are removed, which is hoped to happen at 90 per cent fully vaccinated.

The State Government is yet to confirm the details around what the border crossing will look like after the milestone is reached.

Queensland is edging closer to the 90 per cent first dose rate, Mr Dick said.

“We have 88.22 per cent of Queenslanders with one dose of the Covid vaccine and we have almost 81 per cent of Queenslanders fully vaccinated – that is 80.98 per cent of Queenslanders fully vaccinated,” he said.

Originally published as Covid Qld: Latest Covid case numbers on eve of border reopening