On June 1, as Melbourne was on day four of their fourth lockdown, one couple jumped in their car and left. From Victoria via New South Wales and finally settling in Queensland's Sunshine Coast, their road trip is now at the centre of a police investigation for potential border breaches.
On Wednesday afternoon, four days after they arrived in Sunshine Coast, the 44-year-old woman tested positive to COVID-19, putting Australia's three eastern states on high alert. On Thursday, QLD Health confirmed her husband had tested positive too.
Queensland Health Minister Yvette D'Ath said the husband had arrived in Sunshine Coast to begin a new job. They were planning on relocating to Queensland permanently. Despite this being one of the acceptable grounds to travel, the couple had not applied for an exemption.
"They didn't come through the exemption process, so it's now up to police to investigate whether they came through any other process," Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said on Thursday.
The woman began to experience coronavirus symptoms on June 3 - two days before she arrived in Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast.
Whilst unknowingly infectious with coronavirus, the couple stayed with the woman's relatives in the coastal town and visited shops, cafes and restaurants for four to five days.
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