Potential COVID case; no lockdown

Fortescue Metals Group has commenced contact tracing of up to 2,000 workers at its Cloudbreak mine after a maintenance contractor tested positive for COVID.

The contractor is suspected to have been infectious with COVID while in the community, however the state government is yet to impose any lockdown.

The worker is believed to have been at Perth airport on July 20 at the same time as a Queensland traveller who tested positive, however the state government is yet to confirm a correlation between the two cases.

The worker was at the Cloudbreak iron ore mine in the Pilbara until July 27.

Premier Mark McGowan said the FIFO worker returned a weak COVID-positive result, then returned a negative result.

The worker had also tested positive to COVID-19 in March and April last year.

The worker's partner has tested negative, with several other close contacts yet to return results.

One has so far returned a negative, the other results are still pending.

A list of exposure sites has now been posted.

That included the Pathwest waiting room at Fremantle Hospital, the Subiaco Hotel, the Indian Ocean Hotel, the Old Faithful Hotel in Fremantle and Terminal 3 and 4 at the Perth Domestic Airport

Those who have been at any of these locations at the listed date and times are encouraged to get tested and isolate until a negative test is returned.

Speaking to journalists at the Diggers & Dealers conference in Kalgoorlie this afternoon, Fortescue chief executive Elizabeth Gaines said she had been worried about COVID since the outset.

“In this situation, the testing has picked it up, the contract tracing has come into effect," she said.

“We have rapid and very well-established protocols for dealing with this.

“One of the slight benefits of the mining industry is we can contract trace; we know exactly who has been sleeping in our villages, we know exactly who has been on our flights.”

The person who tested positive was a specialist maintenance contractor working on Fortescue’s OPF (ore processing facility) equipment.

Ms Gaines said her understanding was that the contractor was tested in the last few days, prior to the planned start of work with another mining company.

Fortescue was notified by the Department of Health this morning of the positive test.

All workers who were on the Cloudbreak site between July 20 and July 27 will be contacted.

“It will take today and maybe a little bit of tomorrow," she said.

Ms Gaines added that Fortescue had the capacity to isolate people on site, if necessary.

Like many, she was concerned about the highly contagious Delta variant.

“I’ve been telling the team this could happen, we are not immune from it, we can’t be complacent, and we are putting all those protocols into action.”

She emphasised the importance of vaccinations.

“We do believe that vaccination is the key to protecting our workforce and achieving workforce mobility across Australia.

“We share the view of the Business Council of Australia that business, and in particular the mining sector, can play a role in the vaccine rollout.”

She said Fortescue has strongly encouraged all of its team members to have the vaccine.

In a statement issued earlier this afternoon, Fortescue said the maintenance contractor was asymptomatic while on site and was currently in isolation awaiting the outcome of further testing.

“The health and safety of our team members remains our highest priority and we are working closely with the Department of Health to assist with contact tracing,” the statement said.

“In accordance with the directions of the Department of Health, all team members who were on site during that period are not required to isolate unless they are identified as a close contact through contact tracing. 

“Fortescue has a comprehensive COVID-19 management plan and protocols, as well as access to rapid antigen testing on site.

“Fortescue believes that vaccination is the key to protecting our workforce and all team members are encouraged to receive a COVID-19 vaccine in line with current directions from the commonwealth government.”