Canberra lockdown: Condamine Court named a close contact exposure site

ACT health authorities have officially deemed Condamine Court in Turner as a close contact site, after a positive case was on the premises for five days last week.

Anybody who was at Condamine Court from Sunday, August 15, to Thursday, August 19, will be required to isolate.

There are about 70 people living in the complex, including a cohort of elderly and vulnerable tenants.

ACT chief health officer Dr Kerryn Coleman had earlier flagged the site as a potential exposure site.

Testing was carried out on site at Condamine Court for residents on Sunday, with additional follow-up tests on Monday.

READ MORE COVID-19 NEWS:

Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith said this included representatives from ACT Health, Canberra Health Services and Housing ACT.

"There was a really fantastic multi-agency response [on Sunday], which did involve testing as many residents as were willing and able to be tested," Ms Stephen-Smith said.

Residents of Condamine Court have previously expressed concerns about a lack of basic maintenance and "environmental health risks" at the site. They have also expressed fears for their safety.

Earlier this year, elderly tenants had to wait almost two weeks for a broken lock to a common stairwell to be replaced, and the ACT government conceded that damaged doors were an ongoing issue at the complex.

In response to issues, the ACT government set up a program called "Connecting Communities", which is aimed at curbing anti-social behaviour at multi-unit public housing complexes.

Our coverage of the health and safety aspects of this outbreak of COVID-19 in the ACT and the lockdown is free for anyone to access. However, we depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support. You can also sign up for our newsletters for regular updates.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: