A new range of quarantine measures are being looked into by the government including mining camps used as quarantine locations instead of inner-city hotels.
“We are going to look at all options and one of those options is to look at some of the mining camps that we have in Queensland,” Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.
“There’s the capacity for all of the staff and the cleaners and everyone to also be based on those sites as well.
“I’m going to put this forward as an option to the Federal Government and will discuss it at National Cabinet on Friday week.
“I think with this new strain, we have to put all options on the table and these are sensible, rational options.
“The Howard Springs works very well in the Northern Territory and there’s no reason why we couldn’t do something similar here in Queensland or if not around the
country.”
Contact tracing continues in Queensland as the government continue to investigate a COVID-19 cluster linked to a quarantine hotel at the Grand Chancellor.
More than 406 contacts of the cleaner and her partner have been contacted, tested and isolated with none of them testing positive.
All 129 hotel guests have been relocated with 226 staff tested and isolated along with 147 former guests at the hotel, three quarters of those have been tested.
Four new cases of COVID-19 were reported in the past 24 hours and they are in quarantine.
None of those new cases were in the Hotel Grand Chancellor.
Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young urged people who have been to the following locations to get tested immediately, even if they are not showing symptoms:
- Woolworths Calamvale North between 11am and 12pm on 3 January 2021
- Coles Sunnybank Hills Shopping Town between 7.30am and 8am on 5 January 2021
- Nextra Sunnybank Hills Newsagent between 8am and 8.15am on 5 January 2021
- Bunnings Warehouse Acacia Ridge between 2pm and 2.40pm on 5 January 2021
- Sunnybank Cellars on Hellawell Road in Sunnybank Hills between 2.05pm and 2.15pm on 6 January 2021
- Hotel Grand Chancellor from 30 December 2020 onwards
Visit the Queensland Health website for a full list of contact tracing locations.
Restrictions are in place until 22 January for the Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan City, Moreton Bay and Redlands areas.
Restrictions at a glance
- You must carry a mask at all times.
- Masks must be worn in indoor places including shopping centres and supermarkets, gyms, places of worship, libraries, public transport, and taxis and rideshare vehicles.
- Masks must be worn in workplaces if social distancing isn’t possible and it’s safe to do so.
- You don’t need to wear a mask in private vehicles, while outdoors at a safe distance from other people or if you’re doing strenuous exercise.
- Businesses and venues can have one person per 4 square metres indoors and one person per 2 square metres outdoors.
- Smaller venues up to 200 square metres can have one person per 2 square metres up to a maximum of 50.
- You must be seated to eat and drink, and no dancing is allowed except at weddings.
- Gatherings are restricted to 20 people in homes and public spaces.
- Weddings and funerals can have up to 100 people, and dancing is allowed at weddings without restrictions.
- Indoor concert venues and theatres can operate at 50 per cent capacity or one person per four square metres, whichever is greater.
- Outdoor stadiums can operate at 50 per cent capacity with COVID-safe plans.
- Restrictions on visits to hospitals, aged care, disability accommodation and prisons will remain.
