Queensland finds ‘missing link’ case that sparked Brisbane lockdown

Queensland has tracked down the missing link between a doctor who was infected with coronavirus weeks ago and the outbreak that locked down Brisbane.

Chief medical officer Jeanette Young said a nurse caught the virus from the doctor, who got it from an Australian returning from Europe who was hospitalised.

The nurse then unwittingly gave it to her partner and from there spread it to their circle of friends, forming the cluster. 

Queensland recorded just one new locally-acquired case on Friday in addition to the seven in hotel quarantine.

It comes almost 24 hours Greater Brisbane and surrounding areas released from a three-day lockdown which originally threatened to be extended over the Easter long weekend.

No blame has been placed on the infected doctor, nurse or the returned traveller.

‘He was a gentleman who came from Europe and was admitted and transmitted the infection to a doctor who has  also transmitted it to a nurse,’ Dr Young told reporters on Friday.

And then the nurse, again, through absolutely no fault of her own, has then gone home and transmitted to her partner, who is one of that group that we know who live in that north Brisbane area and a close social network. 

‘So then it spread within that network. And then we had the gentleman come forward, just outside of the blue, and get tested. So, due to all of those people doing what they did, so effectively, we found that cluster. And we’ve got it under control.  

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk paid tribute to the 35,350 Queenslanders who came forward for testing on Thursday. 

More to come.