@countessalmirena wrote:
I'm replying to the thread rather than to the last post...
I now understand rather more fully why SA Health were so alarmed by this cluster. On the basis of the information that they had, it seemed that it might possibly be a more virulent / more easily transmittable strain - or else that the particular epidemiological circumstances led to higher and faster transmission rates.
If fomite transmission was happening readily, no wonder the CPHO was so alarmed. No wonder the whole state was shut down; no wonder takeaway was being shut down and bakeries shut down. In the context of that assumption (reasonable on the basis of the evidence at hand), that was a frighteningly necessary thing to do.
But once they began to suspect that the second Peppers Waymouth security guard's account did not make sense in terms of additional evidence or analysis, and pressed that point to discover that he was indeed lying, it would have been simultaneously a huge relief and a tremendous feeling of outrage at the unnecessary severity of the statewide lockdown.
As I understand it (in case anyone reading this thread hasn't got the gist of it, which is possible as it's a little confusing), it all starts with an older woman testing positive in hospital before having a procedure performed. Her case is easily and quickly traced to a close contact, her daughter. The daughter is a cleaner at Peppers Waymouth, and she caught the virus from one of the returned overseas people quarantined there. That's how the whole thing originated... and that was reportedly through fomite transmission. (However, I'm less convinced now of that, because SA Health were working on the assumption that fomite transmission was a factor because of "the lie". Anyway, somehow the cleaner was infected and it's reasonable to assume that the source was a returnee in the hotel. Genomic testing will establish that.)
Contact tracing took place. All of the staff at the hotels were tested. Two security guards at Peppers Waymouth tested positive. One of these two also worked at Woodville Pizza Bar, so of course that expanded the possible close contacts. Family and close contacts of the cleaner and those two security guards were tested, and we know that the virus had already spread among them. But the chain of transmission was identified - no mystery cases, so although the cluster was upsetting, it was not actually alarming and it looked to be under control.
BUT - there quickly came a spanner in the works. A security guard at another medi-hotel (the Stamford) tested positive. Contact tracers could find no connection between him and the other cases. The security guards didn't work shifts at different medi-hotels. Alarm bells were rining; what was the connection? Questioning by the contact tracers resulted in a disturbing conclusion. The Stamford security guard said he'd ordered takeaway pizza from the Woodville Pizza Bar - and without any other contact emerging, the conclusion was that getting that takeaway pizza - which was a very casual contact indeed - must have been the point of transmission. That meant fomite tranmission in a casual situation - and that was incredibly dangerous. That's why the shutdown was announced.
Something must not have added up, though. Suspicion was raised; the Stamford guard was pushed harder, and he finally admitted that he actually worked at the pizza bar as well as working as a security guard. He was not a casual contact having contracted COVID-19 through a takeaway order - he was a close contact of the other security guard (from Peppers Waymouth) by virtue of their both being employed at that same pizza bar.
Not only did the Stamford guard lie, but there's something very wrong with that pizza bar management and staff. Surely the manager must have known full well about the employment situation? I can't imagine he wasn't questioned. Did any of the staff not realise that the guy was an employee rather than a casual customer? Didn't the Peppers Waymouth guard realise it? It's hard to believe that the two security guards working at the same pizza bar wouldn't have exchanged stories about their security guard work.
It's an expensive lie, and a stupid lie - and completely unnecessary.
(But what a plot for a story...)
SA should be able to get on top of this cluster. I'm relieved for the sake of the South Australians who were prepared to brave the rigours of full-throttle lockdown.
Just on the subject of dogs and walks, I once tried to take my cat for a walk. He growned menacingly, scratched, bit, and refused to co-operate. (He didn't mind following me on my run because he was of the impression that he was acting entirely voluntarily.)
Currently he was within his lawful rights to deceive and/or withhold pertinent information .....
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