The Australia’s capital extends Lockdown until Oct. 15th. Why? According to the media sources, the Australian Federal Police (AFPD) has been asked to step in and assist local authorities in preventing the outbreak of what is likely to be a large scale virus outbreak. So, why is the Australian Capital Region (ACR) on lock down? There are many theories as to this, but let’s start with what’s causing the Lockdown.
The reasons for the quarantine are not yet known. It remains to be seen if the outbreak of influenza in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland is caused by the same strain or a different strain. If it is a different strain the public health officials want to contain the situation before it worsens. The problem is that there is no way to know until doctors are able to test a sample from a possible outbreak.
Public health officials believe that an outbreak will occur somewhere between October and December. They believe that this is the right time to start thinking about quarantining the ACR. The big concern is that as soon as the disease is contained there is a possibility that it will spread to other areas of Australia and even Asia. That would be bad for business and worst case scenario, the economy. This is why the quarantine period is being extended.
There are other concerns that the public health officials have. For one, it’s not known if the current outbreak is widespread. Only a small fraction of the approximately 26 million people living in the ACR have shown any sign of infection so far. If the disease spreads further, the cost to the health care system will be enormous. It’s also important to note that the disease isn’t confined to young adults.
As mentioned above, the number of cases in children continues to rise. The number of confirmed cases in children over the age of five has increased dramatically in the last month. There are also concerns that the disease could affect more elderly people. As you can imagine, with this much concern by the public health officials and with the need to implement a mandatory quarantining measure, it will be very difficult to keep the disease from spreading. This is a good time for you to get quarantined so you know where you stand.
The other area of concern with this outbreak is what will happen to the local animals once it’s fully established. The quarantine area is a large one and covers quite a bit of land. While there’s no definite way to know if the disease will jump from the birds to humans, the risk is very real.
When you know that you’re safe from this deadly plague, the last thing you want to do is make an impulsive decision to get back into the city. However, once you are informed about the situation and that your family is safe, it’s a very good time to consider relocating to Melbourne. Once you are able to get the virus under control, you’ll likely never want to go near the capital ever again. In fact, you may be advised not to come back once you show signs of the disease. This is a drastic measure, but it will ensure that no mass outbreaks of the illness hit the Australian Capital Region ever again.
While the quarantine area is still in place, public health officials are encouraging citizens to refrain from coming into contact with anyone who shows symptoms of the outbreak. If a person does come in contact with an infected person, they should immediately wash their hands and their feet. They should also stay home to ensure there is no spread of the disease. For those who want to come to the Capital Region, there are now many tourist attractions that allow you to simply visit and not worry about being contagious. There are also plenty of day care centers and hotels that will give you the peace of mind that you need to enjoy your visit to the Australia Capital Region.