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NSW-Victoria coronavirus
breach after Melbourne
Jetstar flight lands in Sydney
where passengers aren't
screened for COVID-19
ABC,
8 July, 2020
Passengers on a flight from Melbourne to Sydney last night disembarked without being screened by NSW Health officials, in a major breach of the state's coronavirus protocols.
An email from Sydney Airport leaked to the ABC claims Jetstar breached NSW Government health orders by allowing travellers on flight JQ520, which landed at 6:53pm, to get off without being checked.
"The final JQ flight arrived and staff enabled disembarkation without NSW Health and police in attendance, breaching the arrivals screening protocols," the email read.
Forty-eight passengers were on board the flight and some were contacted in the terminal once they dispersed.
Yesterday, the NSW Government introduced new laws that banned anyone from Greater Melbourne travelling to NSW except under "exceptional circumstances", such as accessing urgent medical care or fulfilling legal obligations.
The breach means all passengers on the plane — who would be required to self-isolate for two weeks — were allowed into Sydney without scrutiny.
Screening includes temperature checks and a series of health questions. The traveller's home address in Victoria is also verified, and anyone who appears symptomatic is tested for COVID-19.
NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant confirmed there was "an issue" at the airport.
"The airport has now put in protocols to ensure that the health teams are there and able to do the screening, and no-one is allowed to disembark before that happens," she said.
"All of those individuals are known, obviously you get tickets when you're on a plane, we are in the process of tracing them up, if anyone is found to have travelled in breach of any orders we'll refer them to police and take the appropriate action, depending on whether anyone is symptomatic, to ensure the community is protected."
Jetstar said it had "refined" its disembarkation procedures following the incident.
"We assisted by locating passengers in the terminal who had disembarked without being screened and provided the aircraft manifest to the department to assist them in contacting passengers," a spokesperson said.
Jetstar also said Victoria Health performed temperature and ID checks on passengers before they left Victoria.
Flight touched down amid NSW-Victoria border closure
From today, restrictions tightened further and all Victorians are banned from travelling to NSW unless they live in a border community or qualify for an "exceptional circumstances" exemption.
Anyone caught crossing the border illegally faces a fine of up to $11,000 or six months in jail.
The email leaked to the ABC said three flights had arrived in Sydney from Melbourne in close succession last night.
"Coincidentally, there was a media presence that captured the entire event unfolding and this may attract some attention over the next 24 hours," it read.
Authorities have conceded there will be some flexibility in the first 72 hours of the border closure.
Further south in the border community of Albury-Wodonga, some people who could not access a permit were still being allowed to cross the border if they could prove they were exemp
Earlier this week, NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard said mandatory screening would apply to all passengers arriving from Victoria at Sydney Airport and at Central Station.
"Any passengers who display any COVID-19 symptoms, no matter how mild, are tested for the virus and directed to self-isolate," he said.
"Any passenger who is identified as coming from a hotspot and does not meet the very strict eligibility for travel is directed to NSW Police officers."
Police vow fines for inner-city public fleeing lockdowns
Man arrested for trying to cross NSW-Vic border
https://www.news.com.au/world/coronavirus/australia/coronavirus-australia-live-border-permit-site-crashing-on-residents/live-coverage/f3390800ff552d772f4ba50949d7407f
https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/leaders/calls-for-daniel-andrews-to-quit-amid-victorias-coronavirus-second-wave-and-melbournes-lockdown/news-story/be922cbe4a9f924c05ec65ae501c4502
Meanwhile, on this side of the Ditch
Woods, the minister in charge of managed isolation and quarantine, told Checkpoint at first, people were compliant with the rules when arriving in the country, not willing to escape from them.
Woods was speaking about the case of 32-year-old man who escaped from managed isolation at the Stamford Hotel last night and visited a supermarket before testing positive for Covid-19 today.
"Things have changed, even in the last week and a half, in terms of the range of incidents we are seeing, in terms of non-compliance.
"In the beginning, we had a very compliant population who came in ... and we didn't have people who were attempting to climb fences or slip through gaps when they saw an opportunity."
Asked why people's attitudes had changed, Woods said: "I don't have insight into each and every individual in those facilities but one thing I would observe is that they are probably looking out their windows and seeing a level 1 world operating when they are living in level 4, which is quite different."
The man who escaped yesterday's action were "hugely disappointing", she said.
"We are asking those people coming home to make the necessary sacrifices to keep their fellow Kiwis safe. This man broke the law."
Woods said the reports she received said there was confusion over the man's identity due to fences being replaced.
"He used the opportunity of people around ... to slip through."
Woods said the security guards at the facilities were "not police, they can't arrest and detain. They can do the things that ... security guards can do."
Earlier today, minister of health Chris Hipkins revealed that the country's latest case of Covid-19 escaped from managed isolation last night.
Hipkins said the 32-year-old man, who arrived from India on 3 July, left his managed isolation last night to go to the Countdown supermarket on Victoria Street in central Auckland.
The man was outside the facility for 70 minutes.
Hipkins said after CCTV footage was viewed and the man was interviewed, the current assessment of the risk to the public was low.
Still, precautions are being taken - Countdown said the supermarket closed for cleaning at 8.15 this morning and will reopen tomorrow and Covid-19 testing facilities are on standby.
The man will be charged and faces up to six months in prison or a $4000 fine.
Air Commodore Darryn Webb, head of managed isolation and quarantine, said: "The actions of this man are completely unacceptable.
"We take any breach of the Covid-19 rules very seriously. Wilfully leaving our facilities will not be tolerated, and the appropriate action will be taken."
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