Australian Nationals Returning by Charter Flight Quarantined on Island 2000km from Mainland

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[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] Australians who stayed in Wuhan and returned home by chartered flight as a measure against the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia) have all been quarantined on Christmas Island, which is more than 2,000 km away from the mainland. The Australian government announced that it plans to quarantine them for 14 days, known as the longest incubation period of the virus.

According to foreign media including Australia's ABC on the 4th, 243 Australians who stayed in Wuhan and returned home on a chartered flight by the Australian government the day before were all transported to Christmas Island on two small aircraft. Christmas Island is an island located about 2,600 km northwest of Perth in Western Australia. The Australian government announced the day before that after conducting virus tests on them, they would be quarantined for 14 days, known as the longest incubation period, at a refugee facility on Christmas Island.

They had earlier arrived at Exmouth, located 1,200 km north of Perth in Western Australia, on a Qantas Boeing 747 aircraft the day before, where they underwent health checks and virus tests, and were arranged to use a separate terminal facility to avoid contact with other passengers.

The Australian government has identified about 600 Australians in the Hubei Province area of China and stated that it will prepare additional evacuation plans if necessary. The cumulative number of confirmed novel coronavirus cases in Australia is known to be 12. The Australian government, along with the United States, has raised the travel warning for China to the highest level, effectively banning visits to China.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.