Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie spoke with Matt Cunningham from Sky News for an on the ground update from Howard Springs about the absconders from the camp

Transcript

Katie spoke with Matt Cunningham from Sky News for an on the ground update from Howard Springs about the absconders from the camp · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Right now though. Joining me on the line is Matt
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Cunningham from Sky News. Good morning to you, Matt. Matt
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: out there at Howard Springs. Is there much more that
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: we know at this stage?
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  Speaker 2: Well, I there's been a pretty agnificant in this operation
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  Speaker 2: under here. I've just been standing on the corner of
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: the house Thrown and Whitewood Road. Pretty one who's been
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: out here knowed how it's current.
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: We we just seem to be having a bit of
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: an issue with your audio at the moment, Matt, for
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: some reason. I'm not sure what's going on. It may
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: not be the best coverage out there. We've spoken before
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  Speaker 1: about there not being four G for our rural residents.
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: Hopefully we can hear you properly now, can.
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  Speaker 2: You hear me? I can?
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: I can hear you now.
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  Speaker 2: Sorry, I'm just on the corner of Whitewood Road and
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  Speaker 2: Howard Springs Road and there's been a significant police operation
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  Speaker 2: underway here in the last half an hour or so.
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: They've just packed up now, but basically they've been searching
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  Speaker 2: every single car that have been coming along would road. Now,
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: people who were familiar with the Howard Springs quarantine facility
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  Speaker 2: would know that it sits basically in the corner between
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  Speaker 2: Howard Springs Road and Whitewood Road, and so police have
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  Speaker 2: basically we've been searching every car. They've been searching in boots,
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: they've been searching boats, they've been searching the backs of
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  Speaker 2: trucks as they've been coming through this area. At one
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  Speaker 2: stage traffic was banked up for several hundred meters along
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  Speaker 2: Whitewood Road as police. As police undertook those searches, they've
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: just packed up. Now we did get that statement for
• 1:30
  Speaker 2: police you'd have seen this morning Katie confirming that three
• 1:33
  Speaker 2: people have absconded from the Howard Springs quarantine facility. Now
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  Speaker 2: we know that the report of that was at four
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: forty five this morning. We're not sure how long before
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  Speaker 2: that they believe those people actually left the facility, but
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  Speaker 2: it will be a bit of a concern given in
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  Speaker 2: just the past couple of days, Katie, we've seen there's
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  Speaker 2: authorities and people actually they believe contracting COVID nineteen within
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: how It Springs due to some family in England. So
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  Speaker 2: obviously that lease operation to try and track those people down.
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  Speaker 2: He's on in Earnest at the moment and they'll be
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  Speaker 2: hoping that they can get hold of them as quickly
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  Speaker 2: as they possible. Yeah.
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: Absolutely, And we'd also obviously read in that statement from
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: the Northern Territory Police that they had said that they're
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: currently confirming the absconder's identities prior to releasing further information.
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: But I suppose the big thing that we don't know
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  Speaker 1: at this point is whether any any of those three
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  Speaker 1: absconders have or have not tested positive to COVID at
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: this point.
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: That's right, and that's going to be something that the
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: people are going to be hanging on that information. I mean,
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  Speaker 2: the last thing we would want given out, well, we've
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  Speaker 2: done keeping COVID at bay here in the Northern Churchy
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  Speaker 2: and the last thing we want three people who are
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: positive to COVID nineteen out and about in the community.
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  Speaker 2: But we'll await that detail from the police. Of course,
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  Speaker 2: we know that there was one man, a man from
• 2:53
  Speaker 2: South Africa at the weekend. Also it's tested positive to
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: the omicron variant of COVID nineteen. Now police haven't given
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: the detail about which part of how it's springs the
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  Speaker 2: absconder is from. We know that it's separated into those
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: international arrivals and are coming on those repatriation flights and
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: those domestic arrivals and people who've been flown in from
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  Speaker 2: communities after they've been deemed in close contacts of people
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  Speaker 2: who've contracted COVID nineteenth. So there's a bit more detail
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  Speaker 2: that we still need to know at the moment, probably
• 3:24
  Speaker 2: to get a better understanding of exactly how serious this
• 3:27
  Speaker 2: situation is. That it's pretty clear at the moment that
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: police are taking it very serious.
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: Well, absolutely, and as they should be, you know, obviously
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  Speaker 1: with that traffic operation trying to make sure that they're
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  Speaker 1: searching all those cars. The fact that it's sort of
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  Speaker 1: wrapped up now does make you wonder whether they've been
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  Speaker 1: able to locate these absconders, but obviously no word on
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: that at this stage, or or you know, whether they've
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  Speaker 1: they've sort of gotten away further than what we may
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  Speaker 1: have thought.
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: No, no where this occasion we get and of course
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  Speaker 2: it's only a few days since and nice to get
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  Speaker 2: out of the house. Drink quarantine facility will be and
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  Speaker 2: ended up in nightclubs.
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  Speaker 1: So that's exactly right.
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  Speaker 2: They like to call it the Center for National Resilience.
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  Speaker 2: It's not proving too resilient at the moment.
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  Speaker 1: No, and this is, you know, it is a real concern.
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  Speaker 1: I think that you know that previous to these incidents,
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  Speaker 1: it's it's you know, been able to keep people in
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  Speaker 1: there fairly safely and we haven't had too many warries.
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: But right now, I know there will be a lot
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: of people listening this morning who are pretty worried about
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  Speaker 1: the fact that we don't know exactly who these three
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: absconders are and whether they have or have not got COVID.
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: Yep, and we will wait on that information. Hopefully we
• 4:41
  Speaker 2: get that through from the police soon. Yep.
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: Absolutely well. Matt Cunningham from Sky News. Always appreciate your time, mate,
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: Thank you so much for crossing with us today. Thank
• 4:52
  Speaker 1: you