Health Minister Sarah Courtney says people who arrived in Tasmania prior to 9:00am on Friday, January 8, will no longer need to quarantine as they pose no risk.
Source: ABC News
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Duration: 2min 2sec
Topics:
epidemics-and-pandemics,
infectious-diseases-other,
respiratory-diseases,
states-and-territories,
tas,
brisbane-4000
Thanks for reading this news release regarding current TAS news titled “Tasmania eases quarantine requirements for some Brisbane travellers”. This news article is shared by MyLocalPages as part of our local news services.
Western Australia’s bushfire emergency has eased after homes and lives were threatened by a string of fires, one forcing the evacuation of a nursing home.
High temperatures and strong winds fanned the flames with blazes reported to the north and south of Perth, on the state’s southwest coast and in the Goldfields.
At one stage, emergency warnings were in place for at least two blazes, one at Kwinana on Perth’s southern outskirts and another further south at Rockingham.
08:39 AM -Bushfire EMERGENCY WARNING for THE SPECTACLES, ORELIA, MEDINA, NAVAL BASE, POSTANS, KWINANA BEACH and HOPE VALLEY in the CITY OF KWINANA: https://t.co/ZSEIQCTb4B
A fire at Gosnells, in the city’s southeast, forced authorities to move 150 nursing home residents to a nearby evacuation centre on Sunday night.
That blaze was quickly brought under control with most of the residents allowed to return.
About 50 remained at the evacuation centre overnight but were expected to return to their homes on Monday.
Emergency warnings are in place in Rockingham, Karloo and Gosnells in Perth.
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One residential unit at the facility was totally destroyed, but was not occupied at the time, while another six had superficial damage.
Department of Fire and Emergency Services Deputy Commissioner Craig Waters said by Monday afternoon all except the Kwinana fire, which had been downgraded to a watch and act message, were under control.
“We’ve got a little bit of work to do around the Kwinana incident, but all the others around the state a looking fairly good at this time,” he said.
11:03 AM -Bushfire WATCH AND ACT for parts of PARMELIA, THE SPECTACLES, ORELIA, MEDINA, NAVAL BASE, POSTANS and KWINANA BEACH and HOPE VALLEY in the CITY OF KWINANA: https://t.co/ZSEIQCTb4B
The Kwinana fire has destroyed about 240 hectares of scrub since it was sparked on Sunday afternoon but its cause is yet to be determined.
At one stage it spread to a rubbish tip at Medina, raising concerns over toxic fumes.
About 120 firefighters remained on the fireground with the dump expected to burn for at least another day or two.
There were no reports of any major property losses.
Parts of the Western Australian capital are being engulfed in smoke as bushfires rage near homes.
UGC
Mr Waters said with temperatures expected to hit the high 30s later this week, there were concerns for more incidents.
“Whenever you come into a period of really hot weather coupled with extremely high easterly winds, we’re always going to be in for a world of hurt,” he said.
The weekend fires also prompted the first deployment this summer of a large air tanker brought over from the eastern states.
It made three significant drops, including one on the Kwinana blaze.
Thank you for dropping in and checking out this news update regarding State and Federal News and updates titled “Threat from several bushfires in WA eases as firefighters brace for hot, windy days ahead”. This news article was posted by MyLocalPages as part of our national news services.
Residents of Greater Sydney must by law wear masks on public transport and in certain indoor public settings. Victoria is working to contain new COVID-19 cases linked to Sydney clusters.
After watching a couple of seasons of The Mandalorian, I was in a Star Wars mood. But although Disney seems to be flinging out new premium series like a stormtrooper ineffectually blasting at protagonists, it’ll be many months before I would get anything new. so with a deep discount and a $10 coupon, I picked up Jedi: Fallen Order on Stadia.
The game came out last year to mild praise, along the lines of “it’s the best Star Wars game in a long time.” But next to games like the legendary exercise in greed that was EA’s Battlefront II, that wasn’t exactly a high bar to clear. Still, I was itching for a few lightsaber battles, so I sat down and got to WHOOSHing.
A Slightly Longer Time Ago…
Fallen Order does a lot of work to fit organically in the loose canon of the Star Wars universe. It opens up a few years before A New Hope, where we see Jedi padawan and Order 66 survivor Cal Kestis laying low, working in an Imperial junkyard. When he’s forced to use the Force to save his buddy, the Empire sends a squad of Jedi hunters to investigate, and a small band of rebels rescues him from a discount (and female) Darth Vader.
Aboard the very cool-looking rebel ship, we meet Cere (pronounced “Seer,” because Star Wars doesn’t do subtlety), yet another Jedi survivor who’s broken off her connection with the Force. She’s paying the ship’s owner, a wise-cracking, four-armed fuzzy guy named Greez, to ferry her around the galaxy in search of a USB drive full of info on Force-sensitive children. Once Cal gets his very own Star Wars-brand Droid, a beepy little robot parrot that hangs out on his shoulder, our setup is complete: race around a handful of planets, following a trail of breadcrumbs to beat the Empire to the list of kids.
While it’s not anything groundbreaking, Fallen Order‘s story is surprisingly good. Cal’s journey from self-conscious, haunted young man to full-on Jedi makes sense organically thanks to liberal sprinkles of backstory, which also open up new traversal abilities. And I found myself invested in Cere’s history, too: why would she cut herself off from the Force? The personal drama is a lot more compelling than the lore, which is all about the tombs of a lost civilization—more or less an excuse for sprawling level design.
Respawn
They characters given gravitas by some very talented voice acting (Cameron Monaghan of Gotham and Shameless fame provides Cal’s voice and likeness) and some really great facial animation. I wouldn’t have expected it from developer Respawn, previously known for Call of Duty and Titanfall, but the faces are expressive and subtle, even when they’re not human. I was happy to see the not-Vader villain take off her helmet, if only so the actor’s performance wasn’t wasted without a face to express.
That said, the story can’t help but end on a bit of a downer, if only because it has to fit in with the rest of the Star Wars universe. When you start out on a pre-New Hope story talking about “reviving the Jedi Order,” it’s no spoiler to say that by the end of things, the status quo hasn’t changed very much.
Strike Me Down
The highlight of the game for me is the lightsaber combat. Fallen Order has frequently been compared to Dark Souls, which is fair, since saving your progress refills your health bar and resurrects all the enemies. But the combat itself is much faster and more fluid, with you magic laser sword providing both offense and defense to deflect melee attacks and blaster bolts.
Respawn
Like Dark Souls and its modern contemporaries, you have to approach combat with caution and thought: just swinging away at the various stormtrooper flavors and creatures will quickly leave you as a Force ghost. Guarding, parrying, and picking your moment to strike are all essential elements, to say nothing of positioning and crowd control in the tougher fights.
Though the number of enemies that can block or tank lightsaber hits strains belief from a fan perspective, this careful and deliberate approach to combat is engaging. It’s more or less the opposite of the unhinged power fantasy seen in The Force Unleashed, or Kyle Katarn’s “DOOM with a Lightsaber” outings in the Jedi Knight games. It’s as close as I’ve ever seen a game come to making you feel like a Jedi, exercising skill rather than just unleashing magic. Even Cal’s more powerful unlocked attacks are balanced with a limited pool of Force (basically stamina).
Respawn
Oh, and since Dark Souls has been brought up: no, the game’s nowhere near as difficult as that association implies. I had a bit of trouble on the final boss, and its blink-and-you’ll-miss-it timing forced me onto a wired connection to make up for Stadia’s usually-invisible lag. But even newcommers to this kind of combat won’t be too intimidated on lower difficulty settings.
Star Tours
The meandering story lets you explore a few new planets alongside some familiar Star Wars locales, like Dathomir and Kashyyyk. And naturally, a few recognizable faces from the movies pop up. But “planets” are basically just “levels.” They’re big, though they don’t appear that way at first, with a few branching and intersecting paths given structure by traversal methods.
As the game progresses you’ll open up new areas of the levels with new Force abilities and digital upgrades to your droid. Suddenly gaining access to the places that were previously cut off is exciting … but trudging through the half of a level you’ve already seen isn’t, especially since you’ll rarely find anything useful in previously inaccessible nooks and crannies. A new paint job for the ship or a new poncho for Cal are hardly worth exploring these levels.
Respawn
And the exploration was my least-favorite part of the game, if only because its physics can be very cantankerous. I often knew exactly what I needed to do, but the game was loathe to let me do it, because its Uncharted-style climbing and jumping set pieces demand that you do things juuuuuust right. I lost an hour to one tiny piece of a puzzle, and was pretty annoyed when I gave up and searched YouTube for the answer, only to realize I had figured it out right away and the game’s engine was merely being stingy.
The inconsistent jumping and climbing is a minor quibble overall, and you can get through these sections with a bit of patience. At the very least, they rarely play a part in the combat, allowing the game’s best feature to shine through the dim parts.
Give it a Try
At the time of writing, Jedi: Fallen Order is just $24 on Steam, Epic, and Stadia, and you can frequently find the Xbox and PlayStation versions of the game discounted, too. It’s also on the EA Play and Xbox Game Pass subscription services, making it effectively free if you’re already paying for one.
Respawn
While it’s not an Alderaan-shattering innovation in either Star Wars storytelling or in action-adventure gameplay, Fallen Order is a solid romp through a familiar universe. And surprisingly, it’s free of the microtransaction nightmare you might expect from an EA Star Wars game. Aside from a few extra cosmetics and a making of featurette in the “Deluxe Edition,” the game won’t pester you for any additional purchases.
Veteran Soulslike gamers might find it tame at lower difficulties, and the Metroid-style exploration is hampered by fiddly physics. But Fallen Order has easily the best lightsaber combat of any Star Wars game, bar none. That alone is worth a look-see if you’re a fan of the franchise. And if you’re into gaming, you probably have something that plays it. You can buy Fallen Order for Xbox, PlayStation, Stadia, or PC through the Epic and Steam stores.
The Scottish government has called for drivers moving perishable goods such as seafood and salmon to be prioritised as France eases it travel ban.
France and the UK have reached agreement over their shared border which was closed amid concerns over a new coronavirus variant.
EU nationals and hauliers are among those now able to travel – if they have had a recent negative test.
But there have been warnings that it could take days to clear the backlog.
Soldiers have joined NHS Test and Trace staff in Kent to carry out rapid tests on thousands of stranded lorry drivers.
There have also been reports of clashes between some stranded lorry drivers and police.
The travel ban was imposed on Sunday after the UK government warned of a new, fast-spreading variant of coronavirus and introduced strict tier four – “stay at home” – restrictions across large parts of southern and eastern England in response to a new variant of coronavirus.
UK Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme there were more than 3,000 HGVs at Kent’s Manston Airport as of 19:00 GMT on Tuesday, and several hundred more have joined the queue since then.
He said it was likely to take “a few days” to clear the backlog of lorries, some of which are carrying millions of pounds worth of Scottish seafood.
Scottish Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said UK minister should now “urgently prioritise those drivers with perishable goods, such as Scottish seafood and salmon”.
He added: “What has always been of concern is the impact on exporters, this is their most critical time of year and the dismay caused by the uncertainty and length of delay has been avoidable and regrettable.”
Scottish government export figures released last week indicate France remains the single largest importer of Scottish food and drink products.
Exports to France for the first nine months of 2020 are already down 11.3% on the same period the previous year.
James Withers, chief executive at Scotland Food and Drink, warned that losing the Christmas trade could be a “fatal blow” for some businesses.
Mr Withers said: “Contrary to an upbeat assessment from the prime minister yesterday, the situation has been deteriorating with a growing backlog of lorries.
“For some of our shellfish exporters, the pre-Christmas sales have now been ruined. It looks like mission impossible to get products to the big markets in Spain which are held tomorrow.
“That is an irrecoverable loss of income and I fear about this being a fatal blow to some of the smaller businesses after the horrendous year they have already had.”
Donna Fordyce, chief executive of Seafood Scotland, agreed: “The window wherein companies would be able to salvage anything from the last couple of days is now, to all intents and purposes, closed for premium seafood, which has been perishing by the roadside since Sunday night.
“Millions has been lost, much of it by small companies that were depending on this trade for survival.
She said the situation turned thoughts to the end of the Brexit transition period.
She said: “The last 48 hours has given us a terrifying insight into what the situation could be come 1 January. While passage may not be formally blocked by then, there remains a “red tape blockade” which will likely have exactly the same impact as the last 48 hours.”
The Thai government is easing travel restrictions for citizens from 56 countries to help the country’s pandemic-hit tourism industry recover, but foreign visitors are still required to undergo a mandatory 14 days hotel quarantine.
Tourists from countries including Australia, United Kingdom, France, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States can now travel to Thailand without visas.
However, they will need a certificate to show they are free of Covid-19 72 hours before travel and a booking at a quarantine hotel.
Thai authorities have issued a new list of 56 countries and territories whose citizens do not require a visa and can stay in the Kingdom for up to 30 days, with a 15 days extension.
The countries are: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bahrain, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Latvia, Principality of Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, San Marino, Singapore, Slovak Republic, Republic of Slovenia, Spain, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, Peru, Hong Kong, and Vietnam.
Meanwhile, non-immigrant visa holders from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru and South Korea can stay for a maximum of 90 days based on inter-governmental agreements.
Manger of Cathedrals campground Jack Worcester said the decision to allow tourists to return to Fraser Island was “fantastic news” for business owners.
“It’s just in time for Christmas, it’s a good Christmas present,” he said.
“No infrastructure across the whole island was damaged, and no attractions, so it’s a big relief.”
Local rangers battled the blaze alone for the first month before QFES crews were sent to help.
Up to 17 aircraft, including specialist air tankers, were also used at various points to fight the fire.
The European Central Bank is set to unleash more stimulus for the eurozone at its last meeting of the year on Thursday, as the region’s battered economy grapples with a second coronavirus wave, Agence France-Presse has reported.
ECB chief Christine Lagarde in October all but promised that extra support was on the way, when she said the Frankfurt institution would “recalibrate” its instruments in December.
The ECB will also unveil fresh economic forecasts likely to have been revised downwards after a spike in virus cases forced renewed shutdowns across Europe, although the prospect of mass vaccinations from next year could brighten the longer term outlook.
Analysts widely expect the ECB’s governing council to add another 500 billion euros ($600 billion) to its 1.35-trillion-euro pandemic emergency bond-buying programme (PEPP), and extend it beyond the current deadline of June 2021.
The purchases are aimed at keeping borrowing costs low to encourage spending and investment and bolster economic growth. The ECB could also offer more ultra-cheap credit to banks for longer under a scheme known as TLTROs, whereby banks get loans at highly favourable interest rates in return for lending on to the wider economy.
The central bank is all but certain to keep interest rates at historic lows, but may increase its pre-pandemic asset purchases from the current 20 billion euros a month.
Indonesia minister named suspect in million-dollar bribery case linked to Covid relief
Indonesia’s anti-graft agency on Sunday named social affairs minister Juliari Batubara as a suspect in a million-dollar bribery case linked to the procurement of goods to be distributed as Covid-19 social assistance packages.
Reuters news agency has reported that Juliari is the second Indonesian cabinet minister to be named a suspect by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in recent few weeks. He and two other officials are suspected of accepting bribes in connection with the procurement of 5.9 trillion rupiah ($420 million) worth of goods. The other two suspects are private citizens.
Juliari was being questioned at KPK headquarters and will be taken into custody. The social affairs ministry was not immediately available for comment.
Some of the suspects were arrested in a sting operation in Jakarta on Saturday, where KPK found the cash, said KPK spokesman Ali Fikri. “The money was stored in seven suitcases, three backpacks, and in envelopes, amounting to around 14.5 billion rupiah,” or$1.03 million, he said. The online briefing displayed suitcases containing cash.
Last month, KPK named Maritime and Fisheries Minister Edhy Prabowo as a suspect in a separate corruption case.
In Australia, the opposition Labor party says Australians who are stranded overseas due to Covid and want to come home are being quietly reclassified in an attempt to avoid “bad headlines” over Scott Morrison’s failure to return them by Christmas.
Australia has struggled with the number of returning citizens and permanent residents since its national cabinet capped arrivals in July in response to the second coronavirus wave in Victoria and suspension of hotel quarantine in Melbourne.
Mainland China reported 18 new confirmed coronavirus cases on 5 December, most of which were imported, according to state-backed Global Times.
The number of new asymptomatic cases, which China does not classify as confirmed cases, fell to 2 from 12 a day earlier. The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in mainland China stands at 86,619. The death toll remained unchanged at 4,634.
Global Times (@globaltimesnews)
Chinese mainland reports 18 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, 1 domestically transmitted and 17 imported pic.twitter.com/vMKWycIro3
Here is some more detail on the easing of restrictions in Australia’s Victoria state, which has recorded 37 days without any new coronavirus infections.
From midnight on Sunday, up to 100 people will be able to attend public gatherings such as weddings, with density rules of one person per two square metres remaining in place, while 50% of office workers will be able to return to workplaces by 11 January, up from 25% now, the state’s premier said.
“Today we can take some big steps, not to normal, but to a Covid-safe summer (but) we all need to remain vigilant and we all need to play our part,” Premier Daniel Andrews told a news conference.
Masks will remain mandatory at indoor venues and on public and ride-share transport, he said.
Public health concerns eased after two travellers who returned from Germany, bypassing quarantine in Sydney to travel straight to Melbourne, returned negative Covid-19 tests.
All passengers on the Saturday afternoon domestic flight between the two cities and some airport staff must remain in self-quarantine until the results from a second test arrive on Monday, a health official said.
Australia recorded seven new cases overnight, all returned travellers. The country has all but stamped out the coronavirus through strict quarantine measures, particularly in Victoria, the second-most populous state, which in early August logged as many as 700 daily infections.
Rita Ora apologises for second breach of Covid restrictions
In the UK, singer Rita Ora has apologised after reports emerged that she should have been self-isolating when she celebrated her birthday at a London restaurant last month.
The 30-year-old flew to Egypt in a private jet on 21 November to perform at the five-star W Hotel in Cairo, an appearance for which she was paid a six-figure sum, the Mail on Sunday reported.
She returned to England the next day and was required, as per government quarantine rules, to self-isolate for 14 days.
Instead, Ora attended her own birthday party at the Casa Cruz restaurant in Notting Hill, west London on 28 November – itself a breach of coronavirus restrictions for which she has previously apologised.
Rita Ora walks the runway at the Miu Miu fashion show earlier this year. Photograph: Victor VIRGILE/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images
Mexico’s health ministry on Saturday reported 11,625 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infection and an additional 593 fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 1,168,395 cases and 109,456 deaths.
The government says the real number of infected people is likely significantly higher than the confirmed cases.
Britain is preparing to become the first country to roll out the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine this week, initially making the shot available at hospitals before distributing stocks to doctors’ clinics, Reuters has reported.
The first doses are set to be administered on Tuesday, with the National Health Service (NHS) giving top priority to vaccinating the over-80s, frontline healthcare workers and care home staff and residents.
Britain gave emergency use approval for the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech last week – jumping ahead in the global race to begin the most crucial mass inoculation programme in history.
In total, Britain has ordered 40 million doses – enough to vaccinate 20 million people in the country of 67 million. About 800,000 doses are expected to be available within the first week.
Initial doses that have arrived from Belgium are being stored in secure locations across the country, where they will be quality checked, the health ministry said.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine has onerous storage requirements. It needs to be kept at -70C (-94F) and only lasts five days in a regular fridge. For that reason, the health ministry said the vaccine would first be administered in 50 hospitals. It said it would take a few hours to defrost each vaccine and prepare it for use.
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of the coronavirus outbreak.
Here are the latest developments:
Coronavirus infections across the US continue to rise as the country moves deeper into a holiday season. Swathes of California will be under stay-at-home orders by Sunday night to ease the strains on hospitals.
The Australian state of Victoria has announced a significant easing of its Covid-19 restrictions, opening up the state in time for summer. Victoria, once the worst hit state in the country, has enjoyed 37 straight days free from Covid-19.
Argentina has passed a one-time wealth tax in order to raise money to help pay for medical supplies and financial relief packages during the coronavirus pandemic. The “millionaire’s tax” targets people with assets worth more than 200m pesos (£1.8m).
The British health secretaryMatt Hancock said on Saturday that the coronavirus vaccine could bring the loosening of restrictions before the end of March. Britain reported 15,539 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday and 397 new deaths within 28 days of a positive test result, both falls on the previous day’s figures.
In London, 2,000 football fans watched the first Premier League game to allow fans into a ground since March.
Portugal will ease coronavirus rules over the Christmas period to allow people to visit friends and family but measures will be reinforced again a few days later to crack down on New Year’s Eve parties, the government said on Saturday.
France recorded 12,923 new infections on Saturday, up from Friday’s 11,221 and bucking a general month-long downward trend.
Iran’s total death toll from coronavirus surpassed 50,000. The worst-hit Middle Eastern countryrecorded 321 new deaths recorded on Saturday.
Russia began vaccinating the Moscow’s exposed groups with the country’s Sputnik V Covid-19 jab.It marked the country’s first large-scale immunisation against the disease, the city’s coronavirus taskforce said. Full safety and efficacy trials have not yet been completed.
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s death toll from the global pandemic has risen above 50,000, according to state television, as the country grapples with the worst outbreak in the Middle East.
A two-week partial lockdown in the capital of Tehran and other major cities helped slow, but not stop the rising wave of deaths from the coronavirus over the past few weeks.
President Hassan Rouhani warned Saturday that the lockdown could be extended to more cities or reimposed on the capital, if people do not abide by health measures.
“Tehran is on the borderline of being in the red zone,” Rouhani said. “All people and public officials should try to implement measures and regulations.”
Health Ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said Saturday that the countrywide death toll the previous day was 321.
Before the most recent lockdown, the daily death toll was as high as 486.
Lari said that healthcare officials had found over 12,150 new cases that brought the total of confirmed cases to above 1,028,980. This represents a significant decrease in the daily number of confirmed cases since the lockdown.
Rouhani also vowed to raise the number of countrywide COVID-19 tests to over 100,000 per day. Iran has almost doubled its daily testing capacity to 40,000 in the past weeks.
While shopping malls and mosques reopened Saturday in Tehran, a 9 p.m. curfew on businesses and the use of private cars will remain in force in the capital and major cities.
Larger lockdown measures remained in force in 64 other towns across the country.
The use of private cars is banned in those towns from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m., while travel between the lockdown cities by private car has also been stopped.
In November, authorities ordered a month-long nightly business curfew in Tehran and 30 other major cities and towns, asking nonessential shops to keep their workers home, while factories and major industries like oil and gas remained open.
Ali Reza Zali, the official who is coordinating anti-coronavirus measures in the capital, said that he expected the lockdown, though ended, will lead to a continued drop in virus deaths over the next weeks.
A spokesman for the Health Ministry, Kianoush Jahanpour, said Iran is working on three vaccines for the disease, including one that is based on inactivated virus samples, while the other two are based on the same method used for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. He said the vaccines will reach the human test phase soon, without elaborating further.
Iran’s government also said last week that it planned to buy more than 20 million doses of coronavirus vaccines from abroad.
The government has resisted using a total shutdown to fight the outbreak, as the country’s economy has been already shattered by unprecedented U.S. sanctions that effectively bar Iran from selling its oil internationally. The Trump administration reimposed sanctions in 2018 after withdrawing from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers.
