Overview
Whether you went for work, leisure or something in-between, if you're a Sydneysider who recently travelled to Brisbane, you were probably happy to venture further than your own city. But, with the Queensland capital currently experiencing its second three-day lockdown for 2021, the New South Wales Government now requires anyone who has been in the Greater Brisbane area since Saturday, March 20 to also abide by the same conditions.
Yes, you should be feeling a bit of deja vu. Exactly the same thing happened when Brisbane went into its first three-day lockdown for 2021 back in January. NSW isn't closing its border to Queensland, or to the Greater Brisbane area — but it has put a new isolation requirement in place for anyone in NSW who has been to Greater Brisbane, which includes the Brisbane, Logan, Ipswich, Moreton and Redlands local government areas, since the above date.
As announced in a NSW Health public health alert released late on Monday, March 29, if you fall into that category, you're required to isolate under the same conditions that'd be in place if you were still in Greater Brisbane. The rules are the same as during NSW's March 2020 lockdown, which means that you're only allowed to leave the house for four reasons. So, you can only head out for work or education if you can't do that at home, for essential shopping, for exercise in your local area, and for health care or to provide support for a vulnerable person.
Greater Brisbane's lockdown came into effect at 5pm yesterday, Monday, March 29, and runs through until 5pm on Thursday, April 1.
The one exception to NSW's new requirement: if you just transited through Brisbane Airport. If that's the only time you spent in Greater Brisbane since Saturday, March 20, you don't have to abide by the Brisbane lockdown.
With domestic border rules changing over the past few days — including a new flurry of tightened requirements yesterday, once Greater Brisbane's second lockdown was announced — NSW Health is also advising people in the state against non-essential travel to the Greater Brisbane area at present.
NSW has also issued a separate health alert regarding venues in Byron Bay, with two of Brisbane's current COVID-19 cases visiting the area between Friday, March 26–Sunday, March 28.
As always, Sydneysiders are also asked to continue to frequently check NSW Health's long list of locations and venues that have been visited by positive coronavirus cases — and, if you've been to anywhere listed on the specific dates and times, to get tested immediately and self-isolate. You can also have a look at the venue alerts over at this new interactive map.
And, even if you haven't been to a highlighted venue but you have even the mildest of COVID-19 symptoms, you're asked to get tested as well.
For more information about the status of COVID-19 in NSW, head to the NSW Health website.