SA orders 1100 students to self-isolate in new COVID-19 scare
South Australia health authorities have ordered the temporary shutdown of Thebarton Senior College in Adelaide's inner-west and 1100 students and staff who attend the college to self-isolate after a new case of coronavirus was reported late on Thursday.
SA chief public health officer Dr Nicola Spurrier said at a late press conference on Thursday that a woman in her 20s had tested positive. She has also ordered 70 students deemed as ''close contacts'' of a previous case connected with the college to go into immediate quarantine at a ''medi-hotel'' in Adelaide.
South Australian Premier Steven Marshall says the state is on ''high alert''. Fairfax Media
Thebarton Senior College has a large contingent of mature age students.
"We are being extremely precautionary at this stage,'' Dr Spurrier said.
About 1100 students attend the Thebarton Senior College each week for various classes, and Dr Spurrier said they will all need to self-isolate until August 15, which marks 14 days since an original COVID-19 case connected to the college was confirmed.
The first case in the Thebarton Senior College ''cluster'' was another woman in her 20s. A subsequent alert from SA Health was announced two days ago after contact tracing, for anyone who had visited a juice bar, carpet store and fitness centre in the northern Adelaide suburbs of Kilburn, Blair Athol and Salisbury Downs.
Dr Spurrier said on Thursday she had made the decisions because she was being ''absolutely over-cautious''.
"We have not got community transmission in South Australia in any way in a widespread form, and this is why we are being absolutely over-cautious in this instance," she said.
South Australia tightened restrictions earlier this week when SA Premier Steven Marshall said the state was on ''high alert'' because of fears that the vast number of COVID-19 cases in the neighbouring state of Victoria could result in new cases in SA.
There were also allegations of hypocrisy earlier on Thursday by the SA Labor Opposition which was critical of a Liberal Party State Women's Council AGM to be held at an Adelaide Oval function centre which was to be attended by up to 600 people, who were all going to be sitting apart.
This came after Mr Marshall brought in new rules which cut the number of people allowed at household gatherings to 10, from a previous 50.
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