BRISBANE, Australia (AP) – Australia is halving the number of passengers allowed to arrive by plane to prevent the spread of a highly contagious variant of the coronavirus first identified in Britain.
A cleaner at a Brisbane quarantine hotel diagnosed with COVID-19 on Wednesday is the first person infected with the variant found in the Australian community. Other cases have been detected among travelers in hotel quarantine, where there is little risk of community spread.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said state leaders had agreed that international arrivals at state airports in New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia would be halved by 15 February. Arrivals in Victoria were already relatively low and would remain unchanged.
Quarantine workers would be tested daily for the virus.
Brisbane authorities are blocking Australia’s third most populous city for three days from Friday evening to contain the spread.
Australian health chief Paul Kelly said anyone who had been in Brisbane since January 2 should also isolate themselves.
“Our main problem is to keep Australians safe and make sure this particular strain is not the one circulating in Australia,” Kelly said. “The reason is because it will be much harder to control.”
Masks will also be mandatory for the first time in Brisbane and some surrounding municipalities, the Queensland state government said.
The state’s director general of health, Jeannette Young, noted that the more contagious nature of the variant had made the UK outbreak more difficult to control. “Therefore, we must act very, very quickly. We have to find all the cases now “, added Young.
The woman’s diagnosis ends nearly four months without locally acquired infections in Queensland.
In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region:
– A state of emergency became effective on Friday in and around Tokyo as coronavirus cases increased. Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga issued the statement on Thursday. It lasts until February 7 and asks restaurants and bars to close at eight in the evening and people stay home and not mix among the people. The statement does not entail sanctions. But it works like a strong petition as Japan juggles to keep its economy afloat. Shopping malls and schools will remain open. Cinemas, museums and other events will be asked to reduce attendance. Sites that challenge the application will be advertised on a list, while those that meet the requirements will be eligible for assistance, according to officials. Suga also promised more help for hospitals treating patients with COVID-19. The Japanese military is ready to help and efforts are being made to approve and deliver a vaccine, he added.