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CANBERRA (Reuters) – Australia on Saturday recorded the first local case of COVID-19 in more than two weeks after a doctor tested positive for the coronavirus, triggering restrictions on hospitals in the region.
Queensland State Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the anonymous doctor last week treated two patients who had recently returned to Australia and tested positive for the British variant.
“We know that this doctor, who tested these two patients positive for COVID, was in the hospital at the time. Now she has developed symptoms, ”Palaszczuk told reporters in the state capital Brisbane. It was the first local infection in Australia since February 24.
The doctor, whose name has not been released, treated the patients, forcing authorities to urgently search for contacts, Palaszczuk said. Authorities have yet to determine the number of people treated by the doctor.
As officials seek to determine the scale of the outbreak, Palaszczuk said, all hospitals in the state capital will be closed to visitors.
Australia has reported just over 29,000 coronavirus infections and 909 COVID-19 deaths, far fewer than many developed countries, aided by international border closures, lockdowns and strict social distancing rules.
In neighboring New Zealand, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Saturday the country would reopen its borders for the first time to allow residents of Niue, a small country in the Pacific, to enter.
They won’t have to self-quarantine when they arrive from March 24, Arden said.
“Niue has not reported any cases of COVID-19 and its strict border controls mean we can be sure it is safe to start traveling without quarantine to New Zealand from Niue,” Ardern said in a statement. sent by email.
Reporting by Colin Packham; Edited by William Mallard
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