
Queensland records 8 new local cases on first day of 'circuit-breaker' lockdown.
Queensland has recorded eight locally acquired cases of COVID-19, after Greater Brisbane woke to the first morning of what is hoped will be a 'circuit-breaker' lockdown.
Six are close contacts of confirmed cases. Two are currently under investigation but officials believe they are also linked to the two people.
"We now believe that there are two distinct clusters. So, we have a cluster linked, of course, to that PA doctor. And we have a second cluster linked to the PA nurse. So, close contacts of both of those clusters," Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.
Tuesday 30 March – coronavirus cases in Queensland:
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) March 29, 2021
• 8 new locally acquired
• 2 overseas acquired
• 78 active cases
• 1,466 total cases
• 2,162,250 tests conducted
Sadly, six Queenslanders with COVID-19 have died. 1,343 patients have recovered.#covid19 pic.twitter.com/7B7UIhULmQ
Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said the nurse's infection has exactly the same genome has the man who presented at a Brisbane Hospital on March 22.
"So, after the nurse worked in the COVID ward. She did do a shift on the night of 23 March, so that shift started 10:00pm that night, she worked through the night into the next day on the 24th.
"So, my hypothesis - and this all has to be tested, this all has to be checked out, this is very preliminary information - is that she has acquired the infection when at work that night. Now, I don't know whether she's got it directly from that patient, because she wasn't working with COVID cases that night, but we have to confirm that, or whether she's got it from someone else in the hospital."
The snap three-day measures including mask restrictions across the state are scheduled to be reviewed on Thursday ahead of the Easter break.
BREAKING: The Greater Brisbane region is now in lockdown for three days.
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) March 29, 2021
I know this is difficult, but it's the right thing to do based on the health advice.
For now, I want to say thank you to all of you for staying home.
Staying home means staying safe. pic.twitter.com/vTr5OtAC3d