16 July 2021
Following an increase in COVID-19 cases in Victoria and local restrictions announced, Queensland is declaring all of Victoria a hotspot from 1am tomorrow, Saturday 17 July.
From 1am tomorrow (Saturday), anyone who has been to Victoria will not be allowed to enter Queensland unless they are a returning Queensland resident, except for a limited range of people who can enter for an essential purpose.
Queensland residents, and anyone who is allowed to enter Queensland from these locations, will be required to go into 14 days mandatory hotel quarantine.
Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said the department was responding quickly to the evolving situation in Victoria for the safety of Queenslanders.
“The situation in Victoria is continuing to escalate, and because they’ve imposed a lockdown, we’ll be restricting access to Queensland from all of Victoria ,” she said.
“It is imperative that if you have been to Victoria, you follow the lockdown rules and don’t travel to Queensland.”
With Queensland recording new community cases recently , Dr Young is urging Queenslanders and those who have travelled to Queensland from any interstate hotspot to continue checking local and interstate exposure venues on Queensland Health’s contact tracing website at www.health.qld.gov.au/tracing
“We’ve got new exposure venues in South-East Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and even Tasmania,” she said.
“With more than 470 interstate exposure venues, and a number of venues in Queensland, I can’t stress enough how important it is that you continually check for new updates and follow the correct health advice.
“And please continue to come forward for testing if you have any COVID-19 symptoms at any time, no matter how mild.”
Dr Young also issued a reminder to those who can be vaccinated to register for an appointment.
“Anyone aged 60 or older who isn’t already vaccinated should visit their GP as soon as possible to have your first dose of AstraZeneca,” she said.
“And anyone of any age who has already had a dose of AstraZeneca should book to get their second dose at or close to 12 weeks after the first.
“Everyone else who can be vaccinated should register their interest for an appointment.”