A person who left Launceston last month has since tested positive on arrival home to London, state Public Health Services says.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Public Health director Mark Veitch on Friday said the person had worked at the Launceston General Hospital until June 20 after which time they travelled to sections of the state over a few days.
Dr Veitch said the person and their travel companion had returned a negative COVID test when they left the state, but the department had been notified on Thursday of their positive test in London.
He said both of the former LGH workers had received Pfizer vaccines in March and April.
Dr Veitch said they had caught a plane from Launceston to Melbourne on July 2 and then travelled on to Singapore.
He said they arrived in London on July 3 and one of them tested positive on July 4.
Dr Veitch said the most likely explanation was that the person caught the infection between Singapore and London, or on arrival in London.
He said it was likely the person had not been infected while in Tasmania, but out of caution a list of their travel to Tasmanian destinations was being sought by the department.
Dr Veitch said those locations would be publicised through the media on Saturday and on the government website: www.coronavirus.tas.gov.au.
He said he wanted anyone who had been in those locations on the specific dates listed to needed isolate, organise a COVID test and once they returned a negative test, they could leave isolation.
"What we're trying to do in doing that testing is trying to identify whether there has been someone out there who could have infected this person," Dr Veitch said.
"It's being done out of an abundance of caution.
"I think there are more likely explanations as to why this person tested positive, but I think that it's important that we cover off even less likely possibilities.
"It's enhanced surveillance - we're looking for the possibly of a case out there."
He said Public Health Services had to contemplate that the infected person had returned a false negative test when tested in Tasmania.
He said two Launceston people who had spent two nights with the positive case when they were last in Australia were in quarantine and had returned one negative COVID test each so far.
What do you think? Send us a letter to the editor:
Political reporter for Australian Community Media, based in Hobart.
Political reporter for Australian Community Media, based in Hobart.
