WA Health is reporting 17 new local cases and 12 returning from interstate or overseas travel to 8pm last night.
Of the 17 new local cases, 15 are related to known clusters.
Two are unlinked to existing clusters at this stage and investigation continues.
All cases are now in quarantine and public health continues to investigate and monitor them.
One of today’s cases was infectious in the community. Contact tracers are working with this case to determine potential public exposure sites which will be uploaded to the HealthyWA website when confirmed.
Today’s figures bring the State’s total number of active COVID-19 cases to 178. Of these, 7 are in hotel quarantine, 170 are in self-quarantine and one is in hospital.
WA has recorded 1,579 cases since the COVID-19 pandemic began, with 1,393 recovering from the virus.
Hospitalisations
One case, previously reported, remains in hospital.
Exposure sites
WA Health’s contact tracing team continues to identify exposure sites linked to new cases. High-risk exposure sites will be updated or added to the HealthyWA website. Please continue to check exposure sites regularly.
WA Health does not list exposure sites where it has identified all potential contacts or locations that can identify individuals who were there. People with symptoms should get tested immediately.
People who receive a text message from WA Health advising they have attended an exposure site must follow the instructions, even if the site is not listed on HealthyWA.
Testing advice
Library Nightclub:
WA Health is urging anyone who attended the ‘Club Bootylicious’ event at the Library Nightclub between 9:30pm on 22 January and 5am 23 January to be tested immediately and isolate until they return a negative test result.
People are urged to continue to check the exposure sites page of the HealthyWA website for updates, and if they have been to an exposure site to follow the listed health advice.
Anyone in the Perth, Peel, Wheatbelt and the South West regions – particularly the greater Bunbury area – experiencing any symptoms should get tested immediately and isolate until they receive a negative result. This applies to anyone symptomatic – even if you have not visited a listed exposure site.
A full list of testing clinics and opening hours is available on HealthyWA website.
Testing figures
7,764 people were swabbed at WA clinics yesterday.
Vessels
WA Health is monitoring the condition of crew onboard the Ballard, a tanker vessel off the Southwest coast.
The vessel reported 12 of 23 crew returned positive COVID-19 rapid antigen tests.
Authorities are in regular contact with the tanker to be anchored off Bunbury until it is given approval to dock and offload.
All crew members with returned positive rapid antigen tests on board the Ballard are isolating in their cabins and being monitored.
The crew do not currently need medical treatment, and should it be required, processes are in place to protect healthcare workers and members of the public.
WA Health is providing advice to the crew regarding infection control management on the vessel.
WA Health is working closely with the relevant stakeholders, including the Australian Maritime Safety Authority and the Bunbury Port Authority.
The Department of Health, together with the WA Country Health Service, would like to reassure the Southwest community there are risk mitigation measures in place for all international vessels for COVID-19 to protect the local community.
SafeWA
Yesterday, 2,006,390 scans were recorded on the SafeWA app. It is important for everyone to check using SafeWA or the ServiceWA app will help authorities contact those who may be at risk quickly and effectively.
Border controls
Information about Western Australia’s controlled border arrangements, conditions of entry and quarantine is available online.
COVID-19 vaccinations
Yesterday we saw a surge in COVID-19 vaccinations, 35,108 were administered in vaccination clinics in Western Australia.
Demand for vaccinations and third doses is increasing. To spread the demand across clinic operating hours and to avoid excessive wait times, people are encouraged to make a booking via Vaccinate WA.
Based on the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) recommendations, Western Australians 18 years and older are eligible for their COVID-19 booster vaccination, three months following the second dose of the primary course.
Vaccination is the best defence against serious illness or death relating to COVID-19 and we encourage everyone that is eligible for their third dose not to delay and book an appointment on VaccinateWA.
Vaccinations are also available at GPs, pharmacies and community clinics.
Children’s vaccinations
Parents are encouraged to book their children in for a vaccination as soon as possible via VaccinateWA.
For the latest WA vaccination figures, visit the COVID-19 Coronavirus: Vaccination dashboard (external site)**. For the latest Commonwealth data visit the Vaccination Numbers and Statistics website.
Mandatory vaccination information
A mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy for most occupations and workforces in WA is being introduced in a phased approach. For more information on getting your COVID-19 vaccine, visit: https://rollup.wa.gov.au/.
Variants
To date, 482 cases of variant strains have been detected in Western Australia – including 275 Omicron strain, 53 Alpha strain, 15 Beta strain, one Gamma strain and 138 Delta strain.
Visit WA Health’s HealthyWA website for the latest information on COVID-19.
**A vaccine dashboard data interpretation guide (external site) is also available to help you.