Prime Minister Scott Morrison has enlisted the Australian Defence Force to aid the states and territories suffering most from COVID-19, to ensure all international arrivals will self-isolate in hotels and other accommodation for a period of 14 days before they are able to return to their home.
From midnight on Saturday (March 28), all those returning to Australia will be placed in supervised self-isolation, in a hotel or other government-approved facility. The Defence Forces will be used to enforce the new measures.
The new directive comes after footage from Sydney airport went viral overnight, with thousands of passengers ignoring social distancing rules and not being health checked upon entry to the country.
Yesterday there were 7,120 arrivals at airports around the country, according to 7News.
“We are worried, we are worried about the growth,” Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy said on the growing cases diagnosed in Australia, which now stand at 3,048 at time of publishing.
The flood of new cases from a particular cruise ship that was allowed to dock in Sydney last week – the Ruby Princess – had not helped matters, Murphy added.
Australia now has 3,048 confirmed cases of COVID-19, while the death toll stands at 13.
