The Australian city of Brisbane decreed on Friday January 8 an immediate three-day confinement of its population, after an employee of a hotel welcoming people placed in quarantine contracted the highly infectious strain of Covid-19 discovered in the United Kingdom .
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As of Friday evening, more than two million residents of Greater Brisbane must stay at home, authorities said.
"
If we want to stop the spread of this infectious strain, this British strain, we must act immediately
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told reporters.
Long queues quickly formed in front of the city's businesses, leading the authorities not to panic to carry their provisions.
Despite the confinement, residents will still be allowed to buy basic necessities.
In Brisbane's major shopping center, the Queen Street Mall, residents of the country's third largest city were in favor of measures to prevent the British variant of the coronavirus from developing.
The British informed the WHO in mid-December of the existence of this variant, which is more contagious than the strains of Covid-19 previously detected in Australia.
Several cases in the United Kingdom and South Africa have been detected in recent weeks in travelers placed in quarantine on their return from abroad.
The first locally transmitted case was said to have been by a housekeeper who was in contact with a traveler returning to the country and quarantined in a hotel.
This lockdown means a return of restrictions like the city has not seen since March, with residents ordered to stay home and wear masks when leaving their homes on pressing grounds.
Australian authorities have restricted travel to and from Brisbane.
In addition, the measures put in place for travelers from abroad will be strengthened.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced that they will now have to undergo tests before embarking for Australia.
The low number of arrivals from abroad will also be reduced by 50%.
“
There are a lot of unknowns and uncertainties surrounding this new strain, and that's why we think this precautionary principle makes a lot of sense,
” Morrison said.
The state of Queensland recorded no new cases of community transmission on Friday.
Until now, Brisbane was one of the many Australian cities experiencing a relative return to normalcy.
Morrison on Thursday announced his intention to move forward with vaccination campaigns, which are now slated to begin in February.
Australia has recorded some 28,500 cases of Covid-19 and 909 deaths, for a population of around 25 million.
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