Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie Woolf spoke with NT Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker

Transcript

Katie Woolf spoke with NT Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Now joining me on the line is the Police Commissioner
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: and Territory Controller Jamie Chalker. Good morning, Good morning, Katie, Commissioner. Firstly,
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: are you able to run us through those exposure sites
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: so there's no confusion for our listeners.
• 0:12
  Speaker 2: Sure. So Friday, the twenty fifth of June the corner
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: store at the Friendly Gross which was the previous igh
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: Stewart Park, So there are Tier two sites and that's
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: to go home and isolate, get a test and stay
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: home so you receive a negative test on the Saturday.
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: Those same to tier two sites included Bunnings at Barwin
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: Conwell Bank in the city as I understand it, and
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: the BWS on Parrap Road. So that's the tier two sites.
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: And as you'd be critically aware, the tier one exposure
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: site and our most critical is the Buff Club for
• 0:51
  Speaker 2: patrons there between three pm and eight pm and their
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: direction for anyone that was there during that period is
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: to isolate it home for fourteen days and arrange to
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: be tested asap. So even if you get a negative result,
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: you are to quarantine for fourteen days under the Chief
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: Health Officer.
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: Direction and Commissioner of course, people can head to the
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: Coronavirus dot NT, dot gov dot AU website to make
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: sure that they are up to date with those exposure
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: sites on the Buff Club. I understand that those contacts
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: now have changed. We've gone from one hundred and fifty
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: close contacts at the Buff Club to one hundred and eighty,
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: so that's my understanding.
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: The contact tracing is obviously doing its job. We initially
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: started by reviewing the QR coding as well as those
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: who registered. As it's a licensed premises a members club,
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: people are obliged to sign in and members ordinarily register
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: as well, So through that and then having discussions with others,
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: we've identified that additional cohort. But again, our greatest ability
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: to get people to come forward who didn't register is
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: people know if they were there or not, and we
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: strongly encourage them to get in touch with us and
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: ensure that they are isolating.
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: How many of those people have health authorities now being
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: able to get in contact with, and how many have
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: been tested.
• 2:07
  Speaker 2: So I understand it's far more, but I know as
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: of last night there was at least sixty that they'd
• 2:11
  Speaker 2: confirm contact with, and that continued throughout the night and
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: early hours of this morning, and I'm heading into our
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: SEMPSI meeting at nine point thirty get an updated brief
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: during the course of that.
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: Meeting, and Commissioner, will all of those people have to
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: go into how it springs or what do those that
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: were at the buff Club need to do at this point?
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: So they must quarantine at their current place that they're
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: dumicil and make arrangements to ensure so if they've got
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: people who are currently with the much strongly encouraged that
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: those people don't leave, that they stay domiciled together, get
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: in touch with us and we'll be able to facilitate
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: the testing regime. That's the most appropriate course of action.
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: We simply don't want anybody who's had a potential close
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: contact moving throughout our community, even within the lockdown environment.
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: Yeah, that's the real concern at this point, Commissioner. We
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: had a number of people get in contact with this
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: yesterday to say that they actually earned up to get
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: tested and were turned away.
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: So unfortunately it does occur that the health team had
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: to ramp that up. They had some logistical issues as
• 3:11
  Speaker 2: it relates to the technology, which relates to the bar
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: coding of the relevant testing that's hopefully going to be
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: sorted out through the course of the day. We are
• 3:19
  Speaker 2: encouraging people to go to the coronavirus website to be
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: directed to the booking arrangements. But I understand that we're
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: attempting to turn on just the drop in process throughout
• 3:29
  Speaker 2: the course of the day and we'll get that out
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: as a public message. Much confirmed.
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: So obviously out there at Marara now the Netball Stadium,
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: people are able to go out there to get tested,
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: but you do need to make a booking or do
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: you need the QR app to be able to check in?
• 3:45
  Speaker 2: Making the bookings far more preferred. It just simply enables
• 3:49
  Speaker 2: the facilitation of that to occur. They've been moving people
• 3:52
  Speaker 2: through quite well. They've got six identified lanes for that,
• 3:55
  Speaker 2: so they can take significant number of bookings and it
• 3:58
  Speaker 2: can be more coordinated as opposed to people sitting in
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: their vehicle for an extended period of time.
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: Commissioner, are you concerned about that that you realistically we've
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: got quite a number of people here that could be
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: considered close contacts from the likes of the buff Club
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: and others that are casual contacts i e. Those that
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: have been to Bunnings and other locations they've turned up
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: to try and get tested and been turned away.
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: Well, we're certainly not turning them away for them not
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: to be tested in the near term. So the importance
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: here is that if they follow the lockdown and every
• 4:31
  Speaker 2: indication is they currently have been, then they're being compliant
• 4:35
  Speaker 2: and they're mitigating any risk of transfer. So we know
• 4:37
  Speaker 2: the risk is being completely mitigated by good compliance and
• 4:41
  Speaker 2: the authorities are making engagement with them when they're turning
• 4:44
  Speaker 2: up to ensure a book and can take place, and
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: most will be able to do that almost immediately online
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: if they have a mobile phone and a smartphone with them.
• 4:52
  Speaker 1: Okay, I've got a message from one of our listeners.
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: It says, is it taking two days to get tested?
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: I was told on the twenty eighth that I was
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: a close contact. The next available test is on the thirtieth,
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: that is tomorrow. Why are we slower in this process
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: than the rest of Australia.
• 5:09
  Speaker 2: Well, again, they're trying to coordinate this and they're dealing
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: with it on a prioritization basis. So if they have
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: those that they know are close contacts, they're trying to
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: prioritize that they've got a booking system that's in place.
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: I'll double check if there is a delay there, but
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: that hasn't been brought to my attention at this point
• 5:25
  Speaker 2: in time.
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: Okay, Commissioner, Can I ask, are we expecting more cases today?
• 5:31
  Speaker 2: Certainly we're awaiting the outcome of some further testing if
• 5:35
  Speaker 2: we do have any positives for what we have a
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: high level of confidence about at this point in time,
• 5:39
  Speaker 2: is that the numbers that we've got within the Center
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: for National Resilience and those within the mining traveling teams
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: we believe will be adequately quarantined and might't pose a
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: further risk. But we really don't know until we get
• 5:52
  Speaker 2: those further results.
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: Do we have the results back yet from those seven
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: close contacts of the man in his fifties from yesterday
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: that was at the buff Club.
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I understand that I'm about to receive the outcome
• 6:04
  Speaker 2: of those as we go into this next meeting, So
• 6:06
  Speaker 2: I don't believe they're too far away.
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: Okay, So we should have those a little bit later
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: this morning.
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: I think that's the intent. As I say, my understanding
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: was normally around this time by the people have the
• 6:19
  Speaker 2: results from the overnight testing.
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: All right? Now? How about the wife and the daughter
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: of the man in his sixties from Palmerston. Have we
• 6:25
  Speaker 1: got those results yet?
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: They're within that cohort and I'm hopeful we'll have the
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: outcome for them in the next little while.
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: Is that quite slow given the fact that we learned
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: about that case a couple of days ago.
• 6:38
  Speaker 2: Well, again, I can only be beholden to the testing
• 6:41
  Speaker 2: regime and then the follow up contact tracing arrangements that
• 6:44
  Speaker 2: are in place. But I think the fact is we'll
• 6:47
  Speaker 2: have those results early today, and those people have been
• 6:50
  Speaker 2: adequately mitigated in respects of their potential exposure elsewhere. And
• 6:55
  Speaker 2: I have to also add, in particular for that family
• 6:58
  Speaker 2: what we do know at this point in time, as
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: they've been wonderfully compliant with everything, even pride of the
• 7:03
  Speaker 2: lot being going in the place.
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: Yeah. Oh, there certainly seems to be very goodwill from
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: the majority of territori ands making sure that they are
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: doing the right thing. Commissioner, Are those international flights still
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: going to continue to arrive while we get through this.
• 7:19
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we certainly have the capacity out of the CNR
• 7:22
  Speaker 2: for that. The scheduling has been working appropriately in so
• 7:26
  Speaker 2: much as every flight that's been scheduled that we've been
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: able to house. We've been able to do so, and
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: more pleasingly, because of specifically the work we've done with
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: the Commonwealth around the pre departure arrangements, our positivity rates
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: have dropped back to a really wonderful ratio. So that's
• 7:43
  Speaker 2: sticking along quite well and not impacting on our domestic
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: arrangements at this point in time.
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: Now, how are we with the pathology results? So when
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: we do have that testing done, are we able to
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: sort those out here or does that pathology do the
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: results have to go through pathology into eight.
• 8:01
  Speaker 2: My understanding as it relates to being able to understand
• 8:04
  Speaker 2: if we have a positive case, we get that indication here.
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: The broader element was around understanding the genealogy of the
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: relevant testing and determination of the strain. And my understanding
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: is the relevant equipment here and certification is the process
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: that we're obeiting and the Northern Territor will have that
• 8:20
  Speaker 2: capacity in a relatively short period of time.
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: Okay, so we definitely do have enough tests. It's not
• 8:26
  Speaker 1: an issue at this point in time that we don't
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: have enough tests and we don't have the capacity. We
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: do have the capacity to do everything we need to.
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: Correct, and we've ramped up our contact tracing capacity as
• 8:37
  Speaker 2: well to ensure that we can deal with this current
• 8:39
  Speaker 2: flurry that we have before is But as I say,
• 8:42
  Speaker 2: certainly the plans we've put in place, the mitigations we've
• 8:44
  Speaker 2: put in place, and the positivity rate returns thus far
• 8:47
  Speaker 2: have been very encouraging.
• 8:49
  Speaker 1: Commissioner people adhering to the rules and regulations. Are the
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: majority complying with what we're being asked to do.
• 8:56
  Speaker 2: Yeah, they are. Certainly, we're seeing a lot more compliances
• 9:00
  Speaker 2: you or where we've had a strong focus on education
• 9:03
  Speaker 2: and community engagement as opposed to moving to enforcement. But
• 9:07
  Speaker 2: I will say, and hopefully you've got a number of
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: businesses that are listening. Pleasingly, a number of people are
• 9:13
  Speaker 2: making contact with us about businesses that are open that
• 9:15
  Speaker 2: clearly don't meet the essential benchmark. I've now made a
• 9:18
  Speaker 2: direction for my team to get out and about if
• 9:21
  Speaker 2: we find any business that's open that doesn't meet the
• 9:23
  Speaker 2: essential criteria, we'll be preferring an infringement to them, and
• 9:27
  Speaker 2: the business infringement fine is quite substantial. So I would
• 9:30
  Speaker 2: strongly encourage anybody that is trying to push this to
• 9:33
  Speaker 2: the nth degree to reconsider and apply common sense. This
• 9:36
  Speaker 2: is about ensuring that at its primacy, the Darwin Grater
• 9:40
  Speaker 2: area is lockdown, and it's lockdown to ensure that the
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: risk of transfer is absolutely minimized to your staff, to
• 9:47
  Speaker 2: your family and your friends. So please common Sense supplies
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: help us out and that way your business can be
• 9:53
  Speaker 2: back open on Friday afternoon if everything goes well.
• 9:55
  Speaker 1: Commissioner, what kind of businesses are you talking about?
• 10:00
  Speaker 2: The number that I think trying to take a little
• 10:02
  Speaker 2: bit of a stretch as it relates to their retail
• 10:04
  Speaker 2: interpretation and what they can do has been an essential
• 10:07
  Speaker 2: service to the community. As I say, there's many of
• 10:10
  Speaker 2: them that will know what's the right thing to do
• 10:12
  Speaker 2: here and what's not and we'll actively engage with them,
• 10:14
  Speaker 2: and if we see any blatant breaches will act.
• 10:17
  Speaker 1: I mean, do you mean like takeaway food or coffee
• 10:20
  Speaker 1: shops and things.
• 10:20
  Speaker 2: Like that, No takeaway foods covered. There's a number of
• 10:24
  Speaker 2: retail businesses. I won't go to the point of naming
• 10:26
  Speaker 2: and shaming at the moment because I'll allow them the
• 10:28
  Speaker 2: opportunity to take the right course of action. And again
• 10:31
  Speaker 2: that just aligns nicely into our approach of engagement education and.
• 10:37
  Speaker 1: At this point in time, though, it does sound like
• 10:38
  Speaker 1: this is a bit of a warning. If any of
• 10:40
  Speaker 1: those businesses are listening and they're not supposed to be opened,
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: this is your warning. If you don't actually shut up shop,
• 10:46
  Speaker 1: you could face a significant fine.
• 10:49
  Speaker 2: Correct. I won't hear any complaints. The warning has been provided.
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: Now. I do want to ask about the face masks
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: people complying with this, because we've got a couple of
• 10:58
  Speaker 1: phone calls yesterday saying that there were people exercising on
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: the esperanade in other locations that we're not wearing masks.
• 11:05
  Speaker 2: Look, I've just driven it in to the city from
• 11:08
  Speaker 2: the emergency Operations center. I have to say the large
• 11:11
  Speaker 2: proportion of people that I've seen just coming in now
• 11:14
  Speaker 2: have been wearing masks. I've noted one or two that
• 11:17
  Speaker 2: have it, and on my return leg if I see
• 11:20
  Speaker 2: any further then they may will be getting engaged by
• 11:24
  Speaker 2: myself out in the public place, and a fine may
• 11:26
  Speaker 2: ensure it. Again, we're trying to raise awareness here. It
• 11:30
  Speaker 2: is an inconvenience, but we understand that it's a necessary
• 11:33
  Speaker 2: inconvenience to ensure the ongoing protection of the Golden Territory
• 11:36
  Speaker 2: and to assist us in being able to get us
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: back to the lifestyle we've enjoyed post one pm on Friday.
• 11:41
  Speaker 1: So Commissioner, fine fines could be could actually be issued
• 11:45
  Speaker 1: if you're not wearing a mask. How much are those fines?
• 11:49
  Speaker 2: So the individual finds five and fifty six dollars, Wow.
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: You've got to make sure you've got those masks on. Now,
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: can you just run us through the age. Is it
• 11:57
  Speaker 1: kids under the age of twelve that do not need
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: to have a mother on?
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: That's my understanding. Again, we appreciate that people with the
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: little ones, it's a bit more of a challenge from
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: a compliance point of view. But again, what we would
• 12:10
  Speaker 2: simply ask is your safest course for you and your
• 12:14
  Speaker 2: family is to stay where your domicole if you do
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: not need to go out, if you don't meet the
• 12:18
  Speaker 2: five exemptions to stay home.
• 12:20
  Speaker 1: Commissioner, there's a lot of questions coming through on the
• 12:22
  Speaker 1: text line. I'll just get to a couple of these.
• 12:24
  Speaker 1: I'm very mindful of your time. There's one here it
• 12:27
  Speaker 1: says mechanical workshops essential services. There are a few open,
• 12:32
  Speaker 1: so if.
• 12:32
  Speaker 2: You refer to schedule one of the chief help Officer directions.
• 12:35
  Speaker 2: There's clarity there as to the types of businesses and
• 12:39
  Speaker 2: essential services that are provided. That as system the definition
• 12:42
  Speaker 2: of the essential worker. So I'll point people to that schedule.
• 12:45
  Speaker 2: If you then seek further clarity, please ring the hotline
• 12:48
  Speaker 2: one eight hundred and one ninety three triple one and
• 12:50
  Speaker 2: they'll be able to give you further guide.
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: Okay, somebody else has been in contact and said we
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: are essential and are at work, but the boss reckons
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: we don't have to wear a mask while we're This
• 13:01
  Speaker 1: person says they are wearing one regardless. But really, even
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: if you are at work, if you're in a common area,
• 13:07
  Speaker 1: you need to have a mask on.
• 13:09
  Speaker 2: Correct, They must wear a mask.
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: As I say, there's plenty of people asking questions. Some
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: of these we will able to just we will be
• 13:16
  Speaker 1: able to just direct to that hotline. But there's one here, Katie.
• 13:20
  Speaker 1: People are going to the dump. This isn't one of
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: the five five reasons for leaving the house. Is that
• 13:26
  Speaker 1: the case of people able to go to the dump?
• 13:29
  Speaker 2: No, they're not.
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: Okay, Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker. We might we might leave
• 13:34
  Speaker 1: it there because I know that you are under the
• 13:36
  Speaker 1: pump and obviously need to get into that meeting. Do
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: you have any idea what time we'll be anticipating that
• 13:41
  Speaker 1: press conference to happen later this morning so we can
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: make sure that everybody is able to get the latest
• 13:46
  Speaker 1: on those figures.
• 13:48
  Speaker 2: I think, with the best of intentions, it will be
• 13:50
  Speaker 2: a name around eleven o'clock. The only thing that will
• 13:54
  Speaker 2: delay that will be seeking clarification on contact tracing advice
• 13:58
  Speaker 2: to this point in time in the event that any
• 14:00
  Speaker 2: positive cases to be able to talk about, So hopefully
• 14:03
  Speaker 2: we can get it out before midday, that would be
• 14:06
  Speaker 2: the best of intention, but be very assured when we
• 14:09
  Speaker 2: do come out, it will be making sure we've got
• 14:11
  Speaker 2: as much information as we recently can put into the
• 14:13
  Speaker 2: public domain.
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: Police Commissioner, Sorry, just one more police shop fronts. They
• 14:17
  Speaker 1: are closed at this point.
• 14:18
  Speaker 2: Aren't they They are closed, Yes, that's correct, But.
• 14:20
  Speaker 1: If somebody needs the police still get in contact on
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: that one three one, triple four number.
• 14:25
  Speaker 2: Correct or if it's in the case of emergency triples
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: your own.
• 14:28
  Speaker 1: Police Commissioner, Jamie Chalker, thank you for your.
• 14:30
  Speaker 2: Time today, Thanks Katie, and thanks for your health.
• 14:32
  Speaker 1: Thank you