Gympie Covid: Case numbers rise above 100 as long testing queues return

A Sunshine Coast Health expert has urged people to only get tested if they have symptoms or are a close contact as long queues return to Gympie’s drive through clinics. See the latest update.

Long Covid testing lines have returned to the Gympie region as the number of cases of the virus found in the community passed 100 on Tuesday night.

The discovery of 22 new infections has brought the number of Covid cases detected in the Gympie area to 104, with the source of 86 of those cases under investigation.

The milestones arrives with the reopening of a second drive through testing centre run by QML at the former private hospital building.

It had been closed Tuesday leaving Gympie Hospital as the only testing clinic running.

The 4Cyte centre at Mellor St is expected to reopen Monday.

Residents reported on social media they were forced to wait on the phone for up to an hour to make an appointment, if the call did not simply ring out.

It was a decision welcomed by residents; by 9am cars were queued for more than three blocks along Channon St.

However, the surging case numbers within the Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service district, with Sunshine Coast and Noosa cases totalling more than 2000, has experts urging residents to only get tested if the have symptoms or are a close contact.

The queue for testing at the QML centre follows a long weekend during which the Gympie Hospital was the only testing clinic running in the city.

Public health physician Dr Rod McClure said there was “no need” for residents to get tested “just to be sure”.

“The time to get tested for Covid-19 is when you feel you’re developing Covid-like symptoms, headaches, fever, aches and pains, fatigue,” Dr McClure said.

“There is no need to get tested just to be sure, unless you know you’ve been in contact with a person in your household who has it.

The call follows a run on rapid antigen tests this week which has left the city’s chemists bereft of stock.

None of the city’s chemists had rapid antigen tests in stock at time of publication.

By 2pm Tuesday afternoon there was no RAT stock at any of the chemists within Gympie city.

There was also no clear indication when that was going to change.

A staff member at one chemist said a shipment expected last week never turned up; another said they were expecting some to arrive Tuesday afternoon and asked customers to “please be patient”.

Staff at a third said the store’s next shipment was not expected for another two weeks.

The continued spread of the virus follows a week in which the regulations intended to keep it in check caused a stir.

Gympie’s Red Cross was forced to apologise to two women after refusing them entry without masks.

A cafe at Rainbow Beach remains the only Gympie regional location to have been named as an exposure site by Queensland Health.

Lyn Morrison said she was walking past the Mary St store when she noticed a woman “crying her eyes out”.

She said despite informing the manager herself and the woman each had medical exemptions, but they were still refused entry.

Ms Morrison told the manager of the store that she was medically exempt and claimed she was still refused entry.

Red Cross spokeswoman Linda Haanskorf said on Thursday the area manager was contacted during the incident, and an apology was given to the women.

The manager assured them it was not the Red Cross’s policy to exclude people from their stores, she said.

Ms Haanskorf said the charity’s policy did allow staff and volunteers to ask customers if they have a medical exemption but customers did not need to provide any personal documentation.

“Red Cross’ Covid safety policy ensures we follow the latest government health directives and any updates or changes to these directives are passed onto our stores,” she said.

“Red Cross apologies for any distress that was caused and we will continue to work with our teams of frontline staff and volunteers to ensure our Covid safety policies are followed and that everyone, staff, volunteers and members of the public can enjoy our stores safely.”

Gympie’s Red Cross issued an apology last week after two customers were refused entry for not wearing masks.

The incident comes as the national cabinet has redefined the definition, including isolation and testing requirements, of anyone deemed a close contact of an infected person.

The change was made to avoid crippling shutdowns, one of several of fears raised this week by Gympie businesses operating amid the viruses continued spread.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the previous rules were an impractical way to live with a high volume of case numbers.

The new rules now define a close contact as someone living with a confirmed Covid case.

People will now no longer be forced into isolation if they have been near an infectious person in public.

Originally published as Gympie Covid: Case numbers rise above 100 as long testing queues return