EVACUATION – CHINA

Home from Hubei, evacuees set up camp

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Original article by Paige Taylor, Robyn Ironside
The Australian – Page: 2 : 10-Feb-20

The global death toll from the coronavirus has risen to 813, surpassing the 774 casualties of the SARS outbreak of 2002-03. More than 37,000 people worldwide have been diagnosed with the respiratory illness, including 15 in Australia. Meanwhile, a chartered Qantas flight has evacuated another 266 Australian citizens and permanent residents from Wuhan. They will be placed in quarantine at a former mining workers’ camp near Darwin for 14 days, as the Christmas Island facility has reached capacity.

CORPORATES
QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN

Darwin next stop for China evacuees

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Original article by Amos Aikman, Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 7 : 7-Feb-20

The global death toll from the coronavirus has risen to 563, and more than 28,000 people have been diagnosed with the respiratory illness, including 15 in Australia. Meanwhile, the federal government is looking at using Inpex’s former workers’ camp near Darwin to quarantine people returning from China. It is part of a contingency plan in the event that the Christmas Island facility reaches capacity. Some 273 Australian citizens and permanent residents who have been evacuated from Wuhan are currently in quarantine on Christmas Island.

CORPORATES
INPEX CORPORATION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS

Mines, hotels to host evacuees

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Original article by Geoff Chambers, Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 6-Feb-20

The death toll from the coronavirus has risen to 492, and more than 24,000 people have now contracted the respiratory illness, including 14 in Australia. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has warned that more Australian citizens and permanent residents will probably need to be evacuated from China. He adds that the federal government may quarantine future evacuees in hotels and mining camps if the Christmas Island facility reaches capacity. Meanwhile, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has told his state counterparts that the virus’s impact on the domestic economy could exceed that of the SARS outbreak in 2003.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Government waives $1000 evacuation fee

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Original article by Richard Ferguson, Robyn Ironside
The Australian – Page: 6 : 3-Feb-20

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has advised that Australian citizens who are evacuated from Wuhan will not be charged up to $1,000 for their flight. He says the Department of Foreign Affairs had provided the government with incorrect advice with regard to the costs associated with ‘assisted departures’. However, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton had previously stated that it is "commonsense" for the government to recoup some of the costs of the chartered Qantas flight. More than 200 of the 600 registered Australian citizens in Wuhan are expected to be evacuated to Christmas Island, where they will be quarantined for 14 days.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN

Virus evac deal with Beijing close

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Original article by Charlie Peel, Richard Ferguson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 31-Jan-20

The federal government is believed to be close to securing a deal with its Chinese counterpart to evacuate Australian citizens from Wuhan. The government intends to place evacuees in quarantine on Christmas Island for 14 days and require them to pay up to $1,000 for their flight. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton says it is ‘normal procedure’ for evacuees to pay their costs. Meanwhile, a ninth case of the coronavirus has been confirmed in Australia; the virus has now claimed 170 lives and infected more than 7,700 people globally.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS

From virus city to island refuge

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Original article by Richard Ferguson, Robyn Ironside
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 30-Jan-20

The federal government has requested permission from its Chinese counterpart to evacuate Australian citizens from Wuhan. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has stressed that only one chartered flight from Australia may be permitted to land in Wuhan, while he has defended the government over criticism of its slow response to repatriating citizens who are in the quarantined city. The government intends to place evacuees in quarantine on Christmas Island for up to 14 days. Seven cases of the coronavirus has now been confirmed in Australia; more than 6,000 people worldwide have contracted the virus, which has claimed 132 lives to date.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Aussies trapped as US flees virus

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Original article by Richard Ferguson, Amanda Hodge
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 29-Jan-20

The official death toll from the coronavirus has risen to 106, while more than 4,500 people have now been diagnosed with the illness worldwide. The virus has spread to at least 15 countries, including the US, France and Japan, with five cases having been confirmed in Australia to date. Meanwhile, more than 400 Australian citizens remain in the Chinese city of Wuhan where the outbreak began, and Prime Minister Scott Morrison has indicated that the federal government will seek to evacuate them. The Chinese government has not yet agreed to allow Australia to send a chartered plane to Wuhan, although the US has been cleared to do so.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET