How THOUSANDS of Australians could be evacuated from China if coronavirus outbreak worsens - and they'd have to be put in mining camps and hotels
- Peter Dutton said thousands of Australians could face evacuation from China
- Home Affairs Minister said government is considering 'every scenario possible'
- Evacuees may be placed in mining camps if Christmas Island reaches capacity
Thousands of Australians are facing evacuation from China and could be placed in isolation in mining camps and hotels if the coronavirus crisis worsens.
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton revealed the government is weighing up 'every scenario possible' as the number of infected people worldwide climbs to 24,500.
The government will consider quarantining evacuees in mainland mining camps and hotels if Christmas Island becomes full, he told the ABC on Wednesday.
'We have been worried about cruise ships. We are worried about what happens if further provinces are shut down, and whether we face the prospect of trying to assist people to depart literally in the thousands.
The federal government is considering quarantining evacuees in mainland mining camps and hotels if Christmas Island becomes full, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said
About 240 Australians were evacuated from Wuhan earlier this week before being taken to Christmas Island
'So we're looking at different facilities because we don't have that number, that capacity on Christmas Island.'
Earlier this week, 243 Australians arrived in the country after being evacuated from Wuhan, and all but two were taken to the Indian Ocean territory to be quarantined for two weeks.
A further 35 will soon be transferred from Auckland to the tiny island off the northwest coast of Western Australia.
Evacuees are being kept at the Christmas Island immigration detention facility, which is located well away from the main population centre, and has a capacity of 2,700.
There have been no confirmed cases of coronavirus infection among the evacuees and authorities say there is no risk of residents being exposed.
Fourteen people have been infected with the disease in Australia - four in Queensland, four each in NSW and Victoria, two in South Australia.
A man who travelled with three people who have been confirmed to have coronavirus was reported to be the fourth person in Queensland to be diagnosed with the virus on Wednesday night.
Passengers wearing protective masks arrive at Sydney International Airport on January 23
The 35 Australians on board a New Zealand flight were taken directly to Christmas Island, a former off-shore detention facility. Pictured: Australians already under quarantine on the island
The 37-year-old Chinese man from Wuhan - the epicentre of the virus - was travelling ina tour group with a 44-year-old man, 42-year-old woman and an eight-year-old boy who have been diagnosed with the virus in Queensland.
Queensland Health on Wednesday night said all four people are in a stable condition in Gold Coast University Hospital.
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Five other people who were a part of their tour group also remain in isolation in the same hospital.
It comes as coronavirus testing will be expanded in Queensland with private pathologists now authorised to collect samples from anyone who may have been exposed.
Pathologists across the state will send samples to be tested by Forensic and Scientific Services in Brisbane, Health Minister Steven Miles told parliament on Wednesday.
Testing is only effective once a patient has symptoms.
As of Wednesday morning, over 24,000 people across the globe had the virus, and 490 people had died.
