Residents in Katherine are expected to find out if a lockdown triggered by an infected US defence contractor will end at midday on Friday as planned.

August 20, 2021

Residents of Katherine in the Northern Territory are expected to learn if a COVID-19 lockdown triggered by an infected US defence contractor will end in time for the weekend.

The town was locked down for three days after the man in his 30s travelled from Sydney via Canberra to Darwin.

It was extended for 24 hours on Thursday after authorities learned the man was most infectious while in the town, which he drove to on Sunday.

They’re waiting for test results from people who could have had contact with the infected man at a local resort and Woolworths.

About 140,000 people in Greater Darwin were also locked down on Monday over fears the man could have spread the virus.

However, extensive testing has so far found no additional COVID-19 cases.

The Greater Darwin lockdown ended as planned at midday on Thursday after all the man’s close contacts returned negative test results.

Authorities still don’t know how and where the man contracted the virus.

The infection has been confirmed as a strain of the Delta variant, but it hasn’t yet been linked to any other cases in the country.

“The source of this infection remains a mystery,” Chief Minister Michael Gunner said.

“It is probably one of the most unusual cases we have seen in Australia.”

As a result, the NT declared Sydney and Canberra airports hotspots over concerns the man may have contracted the virus at one of them.

The airports, which are usually exempt, join all of NSW, the ACT and Greater Melbourne on the NT hotspot list.

The infected man arrived at Darwin Airport on a Qantas flight just before midnight last Thursday and travelled to the Hilton Hotel by taxi.

He returned a positive result on Sunday night after mandatory testing at Royal Darwin Hospital earlier in the day.

Before the results arrived, he drove 320km south to Katherine for work.

He previously returned a negative COVID-19 test on August 10 during his 14-day stay in a Sydney quarantine hotel.

The Territory’s mandatory COVID-19 test for travellers who have completed hotel quarantine in other jurisdictions has also changed as a result of the man’s case.

Currently, they are tested on the third day after they arrive in the NT. They’ll now be required to stay in supervised quarantine from the time they arrive in the NT until they return a negative test.

Meanwhile, the federal and NT governments have increased financial support for Territory tourism businesses impacted by the COVID-19 restrictions by $10.3 million.