WA Health is reporting 18 new local cases and 14 travel related cases to 8pm last night.
Of the 18 new local cases, 14 are linked to close contacts of known cases and have been in isolation while infectious.
Some of the new local cases were infectious in the community. Contact tracers are working to determine potential public exposure sites which will be uploaded to the HealthyWA website when confirmed.
All new cases are now in quarantine.
Today’s figures bring the State’s total number of active COVID-19 cases to 203. Of these, 11 are in hotel quarantine, 192 are in self-quarantine.
WA has recorded 1,640 cases since the COVID-19 pandemic began, with 1428 recovering from the virus.
Exposure sites
WA Health’s contact tracing team continues to identify exposure sites linked to new cases. Please continue to regularly check the HealthyWA website for updated or new exposure sites.
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
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
7,099 people were swabbed at WA clinics yesterday.
Vessels
WA Health is monitoring the condition of crew onboard the MV Ballard, a tanker vessel off the South West coast.
The vessel reported 18 of 23 crew returned positive COVID-19 rapid antigen tests.
Authorities are in regular contact with the tanker, which is 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 MV Ballard are undertaking appropriate isolation periods and are 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 South West community there are risk mitigation measures in place for all international vessels for COVID-19 to protect the local community.
SafeWA
Yesterday, 2,170,075 scans were recorded on the SafeWA app. It is important for everyone to check in using SafeWA or the ServiceWA app as this 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, 35,503 COIVD-19 vaccinations were administered in vaccination clinics in Western Australia. This includes vaccinations administered at GPs, pharmacies and community clinics.
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 16 years and older are eligible for their COVID-19 booster vaccination, three months following their second dose.
A third dose “vaccination blitz” will take place over two weeks from Monday, February 7. During this time an extra 40,000 appointments are available at State-run clinics.
This will boost weekly capacity of State-run clinics to around 100,000 doses.
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 to book an appointment on VaccinateWA.
Vaccinations are also available at GPs, pharmacies and community clinics.
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.
Children’s vaccinations
Parents are encouraged to book their children in for a vaccination as soon as possible via VaccinateWA.
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.