Nurse's union defends Blackwater trip, says she could not have infected miner

The Rockhampton nurse whose travel is now being investigated by Queensland Health followed protocol by self-isolating after a trip to Malaysia and before she drove to Blackwater, according to her union.

A month after her road trip to the small mining town, her union said, she tested positive for COVID-19.

Queensland Health is tracing people who may have had contact with 30-year-old Blackwater miner Nathan Turner, who died in his home on Tuesday.

A post-mortem revealed Mr Turner had COVID-19, but his exact cause of death is still unknown, as he suffered from other medical issues.

Nurses' Professional Association of Queensland spokesman Jack McGuire said the nurse was “absolutely distraught” about the criticism she faced for her trip to Blackwater and wanted to explain her side of the story.

“She was in Kuala Lumpur throughout March. She is back by the end of March and then puts herself into 14 days self-isolation quarantine, as was required at that point,” he said.

“She did that in her own home in Rockhampton. She has flown back home through Sydney. They had not brought in the enforced quarantine at that point.

“She ends up in Rockhampton by the end of March in isolation with just a colleague [to] bring her meals.”

Mr McGuire said the nurse finished her isolation on April 10 and she drove to Blackwater on April 11 to see the sunrise, not the sunset, as earlier reports said.

“As a normal human being would do, she wanted to stretch her legs and see a part of the world, so she decides she is going to go to a lookout and see a sunrise,” he said.

'It is an impossibility that she is connected ... It defies logic and common sense.'NPAQ's Jack McGuire

“The lookout was not far from Blackwater. She went to the lookout and because Blackwater was just up the road and there was a job posting there that she was going to apply for, she drove down to Blackwater, took a photo and came home.

“That was the extent of it.”

It is an almost 400 kilometre round trip from Rockhampton to Blackwater.

Mr McGuire said the nurse might have become infected with the coronavirus when she returned to Brisbane to see a specialist about a WorkCover health test.

He said the nurse was distraught her positive COVID-19 test was being linked to the death of Mr Turner.

Timeline of Rockhampton nurse’s travel and sickness

Queensland Health said Mr Turner began to experience respiratory problems “since the first week of May”.

Earlier this week, the department said the time frames for Mr Turner developing symptoms and the Rockhampton nurse's visit to the town did not match.

“It is an impossibility that she is connected," Mr McGuire said.

"She was not infectious when she went to Blackwater.

“It would be the first case ever that COVID-19 has lasted 5½ weeks without symptoms.

“It defies logic and common sense.”

Queensland's Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said the nurse had worked at the Rockhampton aged care centre while she was unwell.

At that time Queensland Health said the nurse "was infectious from May 3 and started showing symptoms from May 5".

"The [nurse] travelled to Blackwater in the second week of May but did not interact with other individuals there," the department said.

"At this time, no evidence has been provided to Queensland Health that links the two cases. But we will continue to assess all information relevant to any case."

When asked about the matter on Friday, Dr Young said she did not “have any of the specifics because the story has changed so many times”.

The Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union has called on all Queenslanders to remain calm and respectful while investigations into central Queensland COVID-19 infections are done.