A stevedoring firm is challenging the Northern Territory chief health officer in court in a bid to have 13 wharfies released from mandatory COVID-19 quarantine.

June 18, 2021

More than a dozen Darwin wharfies forced into two weeks’ COVID-19 quarantine at Howard Springs after allegedly uploading a foreign ship without personal protection equipment could be released early.

Their employer, stevedoring company Linx Cargo Care Group, is attempting to win the 13 men’s release in the NT Local Court, where it’s challenging Chief Health Officer Hugh Heggie’s order.

The group was directed to 14 days’ mandatory supervised quarantine last Friday after allegedly unloading the Tacoma Trader cargo vessel without PPE.

Australian Border Force personnel witnessed the stevedores entering the vessel and reported it to health authorities and police.

Dr Heggie said despite the port workers not coming into direct contact with the ship’s crew, they could have touched virus-contaminated surfaces on the Tacoma, which sailed from Singapore on June 5.

The court case comes as independent COVID testing of the ship’s crew found they were not infected with the virus, the Maritime Workers Union said.

The ship has since sailed from Darwin bound for Port Hedland in Western Australia, where it’s set unload more cargo containers.

The union has been critical of NT Health’s handling of the situation, saying it was an overreaction and the workers were wearing PPE and followed the same COVID safety plans that have been in place for every vessel arrival for more than 14 months.

It also alleges the department refused a request from Tacoma’s operator when the ship arrived in port to conduct COVID testing on the crew, which it’s obligated to do for international seafarers.

“The result of this situation is that port operations have ground to a halt,” MUA assistant national secretary Adrian Evans said on Thursday.

He said NT Health had since told the port workers they need to wear face shields and surgical gowns when unloading vessels, which is not suitable PPE for working on or near ships.

He said the incident had left many in the industry confused about how work could safely proceed and 13 workers unfairly forced into quarantine.

Commercial vessels entering into the NT from international waters are processed by Australian Border Force and the Australian Department of Agriculture, and are subject to the COVID-19 border arrival conditions which include quarantine.

NT Health said it checked the Tacoma crew’s temperatures and asked health and safety questions when the ship arrived in Darwin.

None were found to be displaying any symptoms of COVID-19 at the time.