November 17th. According to Australia.com, on the 17th local time, with the increasing number of local cases of Coronavirus in South Australia,
South Australian state government announced that the local area will return to lockdown and cancel all international flights.
Australian Prime Minister Morrison will also send defense forces and an pandemic tracking team to South Australia to support the local fight against the pandemic.
Australia under pandemic
Australia under pandemic South Australia returns to lockdown: borders closed, restrictions restarted
According to reports, in response to the outbreak in the northern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia has re-implemented a series of pandemic control measures. South Australian Governor Marshall said, “We are now facing the biggest test so far. But I want to assure all South Australians that we are working day and night to control the outbreak.”
According to reports, the latest restriction policy took effect on the 17th. Stadiums, entertainment centers and cafes will be closed and are expected to last for two weeks; community sports competitions and training will be temporarily cancelled, but outdoor fitness activities can continue. The funeral is limited to 50 people, and the church can accommodate up to 100 people; the school will remain open.
The government recommends that people in South Australia refrain from unnecessary travel and wear masks where they cannot maintain social distance. In addition, international flights from Adelaide have been suspended.
Within 24 hours, South Australia has effectively closed its borders to Western Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and Queensland. Victoria has imposed stricter restrictions on tourists from South Australia, while NSW Premier Berekikeli said that the NSW government is closely monitoring the situation.
The Prime Minister sends troops to support South Australia’s fight against the pandemic
According to reports, Morrison will send a national defense force and an pandemic tracking team to South Australia to support rapid detection, work hard to keep the domestic borders open, and hope to save the National Cabinet’s plan to lift the pandemic restrictions before Christmas. The federal government has also established an aged care response center in South Australia.
Morrison said: “South Australia moved very quickly. They responded to this and quickly tracked the number of cases. In the days to come, this will be a strong test of the South Australia pandemic prevention system.”
According to reports, on November 15, South Australia reported its first locally infected case in the past three months. The number of cases increased on the 16th. As of the 17th, there have been more than 20 locally confirmed cases.
The outbreak in South Australia is similar to that in Victoria? Experts give analysis
South Australia’s health department director Sperry said on the 16th that the cluster infection was related to a hotel used to isolate returning travelers from overseas, and one of the infected persons worked in this hotel.
In this regard, Esterman, a professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the University of South Australia, said: “South Australia has many similarities with the second wave of the previous Victorian outbreak. Like Victoria, they all started the outbreak from an isolated hotel. Yes. The same is also a family cluster infection. So, all of this is very familiar.”
However, Baxter, Dean of the School of Population and Global Health at the University of Melbourne, believes that South Australia has not learned the lessons of Victoria. She said that for Australia, hotel isolation is still its biggest source of risk.
