CLANCY OVERELL | Editor | CONTACT
The good news is: For, now the NRL Grand Final will be going ahead at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium this Sunday.
In the face of a new, cruelly timed, outbreak in the River City – the Queensland Premier and her health experts are keeping a close eye on any new cases in the state’s South-East.
However, Annastacia Palaszczuk has always said they only need 48-hours to relocate both NRL teams and media to Townsville Stadium, should the situation in Brisbane worsen in Brisbane.
But for now, it seems she’s confident that the knife edge is not as sharp as was reported yesterday.
6 new cases were reported in Queensland in the last 24 hours, with four of them linked to existing cases (the aviation training cluster).
One is a person who travelled from interstate.
And the last one, is a cause of concern for the whole state: A pilot who has flown to North QLD in the last week.
But Annastacia is committed to white knuckling through the weekend, and pulling off Queensland’s first ever rugby league grand final – just under stage 2 restrictions.
From 4:00pm today, restrictions will be tightened in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Moreton Bay, Logan, Townsville and Palm Island for two weeks.
The most noticeable new measures will be the restrictions surrounding street fights, with the Queensland Premier banning punch-ons of more than 5-on-5.
“This may sound harsh, but it is imperative for us to get on top of the outbreak – and the key to doing that is limiting how many people can get involved in a biff” said the Premier.
“5-on-5 is the best we can do for now. Anyone flouting these limits will be fined accordingly”
It doesn’t seem like much, but moving from stage 3 to stage 2 restrictions alters the way of life for many Queenslanders. However, the Premier does believe we will be able to increase the numbers for punch-ons well before the Christmas silly season kicks off.
Other public health measures that have been re-introduced include:
Public and private gatherings are limited to 30 people, while aged care, correctional centres, hospitals and disability service provides will close to visitors
Cafes and restaurants will return to 1 person per 4 square metres indoors and 1 person per 2 square metres outdoors. You must be seated in hospitality venues when you’re eating and drinking, and dancing is not permitted
Funerals and weddings are restricted to 100 people. A maximum of 20 people can dance at weddings
Capacity at stadiums and events will decrease to 75 per cent, including the grand final.
