Sydney school shuts after student tests positive for coronavirus

A Sydney high school with 1,200 students has been forced to shut down after a teenage boy was struck down with the coronavirus – marking the seventh case to come out of Australia’s virus ‘ground zero’. 

Epping Boys High School, in the city’s north, will be closed on Friday to prevent further spread of COVID-19 after a Year 11 student tested positive for the virus on Thursday.  

Students have been urged to stay home and self-isolate for 14 days, while NSW Health and Education officials conduct the contact-tracing process. 

The boy is the seventh person to be diagnosed in what is emerging as Australia’s virus epicentre – a tiny pocket of Sydney consisting of neighbouring suburbs Ryde, Macquarie Park and Epping.  

Two hospital doctors, a university professor, two nursing home residents and a carer in the area were struck down with the virus in just three days, with dozens more feared to have been exposed.   

Epping Boys High School, in the Sydney’s north, will be closed on Friday after a 16-year-old boy was diagnosed with coronavirus

Macquarie Park (pictured), 13km north-west of Sydney’s CBD, has become Australia’s coronavirus epicentre – with seven people infected and a childcare centre dramatically shut

Worried parents took to social media to express their concerns after the news broke

Epping High School is located less than 2km from Dorothy Henderson Lodge Aged Care Centre, in Macquarie Park, where multiple cases of the virus were reported this week – including a 95-year-old woman who died on Wednesday. 

Twenty-five of the country’s cases of coronavirus have come from NSW, as the government admits it has no way of controlling the spread of the fatal respiratory disease. 

More than 20 per cent of people living in the ‘ground zero’ area, 13km north-west of Sydney’s CBD, have Chinese ancestry – compared to just 3.9 per cent nationally. 

About 70 per cent of residents in Macquarie Park have foreign-born parents, compared to just 34.4 per cent nationally.

It has sparked a panic across the inner-city area, with the local Aldi supermarket left with bare shelves as locals rushed to stock pile. 

Banksia Cottage childcare centre (pictured) in Sydney’s north-west is just across the road from Dorothy Henderson Lodge aged care complex where multiple cases of the infectious disease have been reported this week

A woman loads her daughter into the car after taking her out of the Macquarie Park childcare centre early on Thursday. She said she was worried about her children catching the virus

Locals have been flocking to the Macquarie Centre (pictured) to stock up on supplies as a coronavirus outbreak threatens the area

In dramatic developments on Thursday, health officials shut down the Banksia Cottage daycare centre, in Macquarie Park, amid fears more than a dozen kids have been exposed to the respiratory virus.  

Seventeen toddlers are being assessed after they visited the age care home – located 50 metres away – for an excursion on February 24. 

Infant care workers are now being tested for the deadly virus, amid a growing panic that they too are infected. 

A further two vulnerable elderly nursing home residents, including an 82-year-old man and a woman in her 70s, have also been infected, after a worker at the care home is believed to have spread the virus.

Health officials believe the female worker, in her 50s, may have been working in the home, where she was treating 13 residents, while contagious.   

Even more worryingly, the female care worker hasn’t recently travelled outside Australia and has had no known contact with an infected person.

Health officials are seen at the aged care home in Macquarie Park, where one woman died and a further two residents caught coronavirus after a staff member became infected

Two elderly patients have contracted coronavirus after being treated by an infected nurse at the BaptistCare old people’s home in Macquarie Park. A third woman, 95, died after becoming infected

She started experiencing flu-like symptoms around February 24 and is now in a stable condition in hospital, NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard confirmed on Wednesday.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF CORONAVIRUS?

Like other coronaviruses, including those that cause the common cold and that triggered SARS, COVID-19 is a respiratory illness.  

• The most common symptoms are: 
• Fever 
• Dry cough 
• Shortness of breath
• Difficulty breathing 
• Fatigue 

Although having a runny nose doesn’t rule out coronavirus, it doesn’t thus far appear to be a primary symptom. 

Most people only become mildly ill, but the infection can turn serious and even deadly, especially for those who are older or have underlying health conditions.  

In these cases, patients develop pneumonia, which can cause: 

• Potentially with yellow, green or bloody mucus
• Fever, sweating and shaking chills
• Shortness of breath 
• Rapid or shallow breathing 
• Pain when breathing, especially when breathing deeply or coughing 
• Low appetite, energy and fatigue 
• Nausea and vomiting (more common in children) 
• Confusion (more common in elderly people)
• Some patients have also reported diarrhea and kidney failure has occassionally been a complication. 

Avoid people with these symtpoms. If you develop them, call your health care provider before going to the hospital or doctor, so they and you can prepare to minimize possivle exposure if they suspect you have coronavirus.  

 

The coronavirus ‘ground zero’ is also home to Macquarie University, which boasts 40,000 students – 8,600 of which are international. 

A university engineering lecturer was also diagnosed on Wednesday.  

Those cases come after the diagnosis of a 53-year-old male doctor from Ryde Hospital, about 4km from Macquarie Park, on Monday.

A female doctor, who works in the emergency department of Liverpool Hospital and who apparently attended the same conference as the male doctor, also has the disease. 

Since then, 40 staff have been put into isolation, after fears the doctor was infected while treating a ‘diverse range of patients’.

Thirteen doctors, 23 nurses and four other workers have been identified as close contacts of the doctor.

A further eight patients of the doctor are showing no symptoms, but officials are still chasing up 29 other patients identified as casual contacts.

‘We are making sure we get in contact with them and make sure they don’t have symptoms,’ Mr Hazzard said. 

‘It’s a bit of a worry.’

The panic over the virus spread across the country this week with anxious shoppers clearing supermarket shelves as they rushed to stockpile on groceries in fears of a pandemic.   

Pictures from the area’s three big supermarkets, Aldi, Coles and Woolworths, show bare shelves after panicked locals stocked up on essentials.

Toilet paper, pasta, rice and painkillers were all impossible to find in Macquarie Park.

Supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths were forced to introduce a four-pack limit on toilet paper earlier this week after anxious shoppers rushed to stockpile on items.

On Thursday, Woolworths announced it was imposing buying restrictions on rice after it earlier introduced limits on hand sanitiser and toilet tissue. 

One of the doctors that attended the conference is employed at Ryde Hospital (pictured). Forty of his colleagues have now been placed into isolation

Aisles at Macquarie Park’s Aldi (pictured, left) were emptied by worried residents on Wednesday, as was the local Woolworths (right)

Supermarkets across Australia are facing shortages on food and other goods as panic-buying chaos sweeps the country. Pictured: A man looks for toilet paper at a Melbourne Woolworths 

Chief executive Brad Banducci told loyalty card members in an email customers will be limited to two kilograms of rice per transaction.

‘As you may have read, or seen for yourself, these are unusual and challenging times. We know it can be frustrating when we don’t have the products you need, or when delivery or Pick up windows are filled more than usual,’ the email stated.   

‘The makers of Kleenex, Sorbent, Quilton and Woolworths own range of toilet paper have all increased their production to meet this very unusual demand.

‘For example, the makers of Kleenex are now manufacturing 24 hours, 7 days a week at their Millicent, SA factory, as are Sorbent in their NSW and Victorian facilities. And the makers of Quilton have tripled their normal production across their factories in Queensland, NSW and WA.’ 

Mr Banducci said the company would introduce more limits if needed.

Photos and videos have emerged on social media in recent days showing empty shelves in the pasta, rice and canned veg aisles at grocery stores and shoppers filling up their trolleys in a panic. 

A Chinese restaurant in Macquarie Park (pictured) as the area becomes Australia’s coronavirus epicentre

Macquarie University (pictured) has more than 8,000 international students and is at the centre of the outbreak

In Adelaide, a train passenger was seen resorting to extreme measures to protect himself from the virus by wearing a full-body hazmat suit. 

It isn’t known if the man was playing a practical joke or genuinely feared contracting the virus.  

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian issued a grave warning that the number of cases is likely to keep going up.

‘What is scary on this situation is that the vaccine is not yet developed,’ she said on Wednesday. 

‘But we ask everybody to stay calm, to go about business and to stay updated the NSW health website is giving our citizens in NSW timely information.’

Officials are urging anyone who feels unwell to contact their GP or the local hospital and make arrangements to go and get tested.   

In Adelaide, a train passenger was seen resorting to extreme measures to protect himself from the coronavirus by wearing a full-body hazmat suit

James Kwan, 75, (pictured) was the first Australian to die of the virus, after contracting the deadly disease on the Diamond Princess cruise ship

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard told the Nine Network on Tuesday that the 53-year-old male doctor is in a stable condition at Westmead Hospital and ‘going quite well’

But they should not self-present at a GP surgery or at Accident and Emergency, in case they infect others. 

As pressure grows on health care workers, Australia’s nursing union has warned their are not enough staff to deal with the pandemic.

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation is demanding more help to stop the transmission of the virus – with some calls for retired staff to return to work.

It comes as the number of cases of coronavirus in Australia rocketed to 57 overnight, with two already dead amid fears the outbreak could soon be uncontainable.

‘We’re calling on the government and providers to provide a registered nurse working around the clock in aged care facilities,’ ANMF’s Assistant Federal Secretary Lori-Anne Sharp said on Sunrise.

‘We know that there are not enough registered nurses working in nursing homes – in fact some don’t have a registered nurse working around the clock.’

‘If facilities are understaffed already to meet the basic needs of residents then they won’t be equipped to deal with a coronavirus pandemic.’

She explained that Australia has seen a reduction of 13 per cent of its nursing staff in recent years – leaving health officials unable to meet the needs of a pandemic. 

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA CLIMB TO 57

NEW SOUTH WALES: 22

January 25 

Three men aged 43, 53, and 35 who had recently travelled to China contracted the disease.

Two flew in from Wuhan while the other arrived in Sydney from Shenzhen, south China.

They were treated in isolation at Westmead Hospital. 

January 27  

A 21-year-old woman is identified as the fourth person to test positive for the illness in NSW.

The woman, a student at UNSW, flew into Sydney International Airport on flight MU749 on January 23 and presented to the emergency department 24 hours later after developing flu-like symptoms.

March 1 

A man in his 40s is confirmed as the fifth coronavirus case in the state and a woman in her 50s as the sixth. Both returned to Sydney from Iran. 

March 2 

The 41-year-old sister of a man who had returned from Iran with the disease was one of three confirmed cases. The second locally-acquired case was a 53-year-old male health worker who hadn’t travelled for many months.

The other new case is a 31-year-old man who flew into Sydney on Saturday from Iran and developed symptoms 24 hours later.

March 3

Six more cases are confirmed in NSW. They included a 39-year-old man who had flown in from Iran and a 53-year-old man who arrived from Singapore last Friday.

Two women aged in their 60s who arrived in Sydney from South Korea and Japan respectively were also confirmed.

A man in his 30s who returned from Malaysia to Sydney on Malindo Air flight OD171 on March 1 was also confirmed infected.   

A 50-year-old woman is diagnosed with coronavirus. The woman is a carer at a nursing home in Macquarie Park in Sydney’s north. She had not been overseas and contracted the virus in Australia. 

March 4

A 95-year-old woman died at a Sydney hospital on Wednesday night after developing a respiratory illness from the coronavirus, bringing the death toll to two.

A Macquarie University lecturer tested positive for coronavirus on Wednesday after returning from Iran. 

A further six cases confirmed on Wednesday evening. They included an 82-year-old aged care resident from the Dorothy Henderson Lodge, where the 95-year-old woman was staying.

The new cases include a female doctor who works at Liverpool hospital, a female patient from the Northern Beaches, a male from Cronulla, a woman who returned from the Phillippines and a woman in her 70s. 

March 5

A health care worker, who attended the same conference as the doctor from Ryde Hospital, also tests positive.

VICTORIA: 10

January 25  

A Chinese national aged in his 50s becomes the first confirmed case of the coronavirus in Australia.

The man flew to Melbourne on China Southern flight CZ321 from Wuhan via Guangzhou on January 19.

He was quarantined at Monash Hospital in Clayton in Melbourne’s east.

January 29   

A Victorian man in his 60s is diagnosed with the coronavirus.

He became unwell on January 23 – two days after returning from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak.

The man was confirmed as positive on January 29 and was subsequently seen by doctors at the Monash Medical Centre.

January 30 

 A woman in her 40s is found to have coronavirus.

She was visiting from China and mostly spent time with her family.

She is being treated at Royal Melbourne Hospital. 

February 1 

A woman in her 20s in Melbourne is found to have the virus. 

February 22

Two passengers taken off the Diamond Princess cruise ship test positive. 

February 25

Another passenger taken off the cruise ship tests positive. 

March 1

Victorian man confirmed to have coronavirus after the 78-year-old was evacuated to Melbourne from a Darwin quarantine centre.

It is confirmed a Victorian woman in her 30s has tested positive for coronavirus after flying from Malaysia to Melbourne via Indonesia.

March 4

Victorian man in his 30s confirmed to have coronavirus after returning from Iran. Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said the man was ‘almost symptom-free’ after self-isolating 

QUEENSLAND: 13

January 29

Queensland confirms its first case after a 44-year-old Chinese national was diagnosed with the virus. He is being treated at Gold Coast University Hospital.

January 30

A 42-year-old Chinese woman who was travelling in the same Wuhan tour group as the 44-year-old man tests positive. She is in Gold Coast University Hospital in stable condition.

February 4

An eight-year-old boy was diagnosed with coronavirus. He is also from the tour group where the other Queensland cases came from.

February 5

A 37-year-old man, who was a member of a group of nine Chinese tourists in quarantine on the Gold Coast, also tested positive.

February 6  

A 37-year-old woman was diagnosed with coronavirus from the same travel group that flew to Queensland from Melbourne on January 27.

February 21 

Two Queensland women, aged 54 and 55, tested positive for COVID-19 and will be flown to Brisbane for further treatment.

A 57-year-old woman from Queensland also tested positive for the virus.

February 28

A 63-year-old woman was confirmed to have the virus after returning to the Gold Coast from Iran.

March 3

A 20-year-old man from China was confirmed as the tenth person to be infected by the coronavirus in Queensland. The man had travelled to Dubai for at least 14 days before entering Australia, via Brisbane on February 23. 

March 4

A 26-year-old man from Logan in Brisbane is diagnosed with coronavirus. He arrived back in Australia from Iran.

March 5 

An 81-year-old man who had returned to Brisbane from Thailand and a 29-year-old woman who had come via Singapore from London are diagnosed with coronavirus.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA: 7

February 1  

A Chinese couple in their 60s who arrived in Adelaide from Wuhan to visit relatives are confirmed to have coronavirus.

A 24-year-old woman from South Australia was transferred to Royal Adelaide Hospital.

March 4

Mother, 40, is diagnosed after flying to Australia from Iran via Kuala Lumpur. 

Another 24-year-old woman, not related to the previous woman, was in a stable condition in Adelaide hospital after falling ill following overseas travel.

March 5

The eight-month-old child of the 40-year-woman, diagnosed on March 4, is also diagnosed with coronavirus.

A 58-year-old man who travelled to SA on March 3 from Taiwan also tests positive

WESTERN AUSTRALIA: 3

February 21 

A 78-year-old man from Western Australia was transferred to Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in Perth. On February 28, he was taken into intensive care in a ‘serious’ condition and later died. His wife was also diagnosed with coronavirus.

March 1 

The elderly man died in the early hours of the morning from the virus at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.

March 5

A woman in Perth is diagnosed with the virus after flying into the city from the UK, via Dubai 

TASMANIA: 1  

March 2

The man who travelled from Iran to Australia on Saturday tested positive for COVID-19.

NORTHERN TERRITORY: 1 

March 4

A tourist in Darwin has tested positive for coronavirus in what is the first confirmed case in the Northern Territory.

NT Health confirmed the 52-year-old man as the first case of COVID-19 in the community on Wednesday evening. 

The man recently arrived in Darwin via Sydney and has had limited contact with the local community, NT Health said in a statement. 

 

 

 

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