A café and toilets at the Brisbane International Airport have been identified as potential exposure sites linked to a transiting passenger who tested positive to COVID-19.
Queensland Health said people need to isolate and get tested if they had been to:
- Hudson's Coffee stand and the adjacent seating area between the coffee stand and the white barriers between 9.53am and 11.20am on Thursday, 29 April 2021 or
- the male toilets adjacent to Gate 79 between 11.23am and 11.15pm on Thursday, 29 April 2021.
These areas were visited by a man who tested positive after he and his travel partner were mistakenly directed to the international terminal's green zone after arriving from Papua New Guinea, a high-risk country. They were transiting to Doha.
Deputy Chief Health Officer Dr Sonya Bennett said anyone who had been in these areas at the times specified needed to quarantine and get tested on Tuesday, 4 May, five days after their exposure.
"It is likely that all of these contacts will be in New Zealand and NZ's public health authorities are providing similar advice to people," she said.
"However, we need to make sure we capture any contacts who remain in Australia. Having viewed CCTV footage, we believe people who have been to these locations during the times of exposure face a potential risk.
"We need them to quarantine and get tested five days after visiting these locations. That is the average incubation period of SARS-CoV-2 so if they are negative, they will be safe to leave quarantine.
"This is precautionary but we are taking no chances."
Serology tests revealed the man likely to have been at a late stage of his infection, meaning he posed a low risk to other passengers at the airport. He and his travel partner were appropriately masked and socially distanced while in the green zone, outside of visiting the exposure sites.
The three flights affected are Air New Zealand NZ202 from Brisbane to Christchurch, Air New Zealand NZ146 from Brisbane to Auckland, and Qantas QF135 from Brisbane to Christchurch.
Queensland Health is not responsible for security arrangements inside Brisbane International Airport.
