COVID-19 pandemic in Western Australia

COVID-19 pandemic in Western Australia
Traffic sign in Perth advising of regional travel bans, May 2020
DiseaseCOVID-19
Virus strainSARS-CoV-2
LocationWestern Australia
First outbreakWuhan, Hubei, China
Index casePerth
Confirmed cases1,356,147 (as of 3 November 2023)[1]
Active cases231 (as of 3 November 2023)
Hospitalised cases89 (as of 3 November 2023)
Critical cases1 (as of 3 November 2023)
Recovered1,354,675 (as of 3 November 2023)
Deaths
1,241 (as of 3 November 2023)
Fatality rate0.09%
Government website
www.healthywa.wa.gov.au/coronavirus

The COVID-19 pandemic in Western Australia is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Western Australia (WA) confirmed its first case of COVID-19 on 21 February 2020, and its first death on 1 March. On 15 March, premier Mark McGowan declared a state of emergency. On 24 March, Western Australia closed its borders to the rest of Australia, and on 1 April, the state implemented borders between regions in the state. By mid-April 2020, the state had eliminated community transmission of COVID-19, becoming one of the few places in the world to do so. There were only a handful of cases of community transmission in the state after mid-April,[2] until late December 2021 when a tourist caused an outbreak that led to the cancelling of some New Year's Eve events, and the re-imposing of mask wearing rules in Perth and the Peel region.[3]

Western Australia's low case numbers were attributed to a swift introduction of restrictions by authorities, a strict state border policy, and its isolation.[2] During May 2022, Western Australia experienced sharply rising cases amongst the highest per capita cases seen anywhere in the world throughout the pandemic.[4]

  1. ^ "WA COVID-19 Dashboard". WA Department of Health. 10 August 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  2. ^ a b McNeill, Heather (27 August 2020). "A timeline of WA's COVID-19 response: Was our success luck, good management, or a bit of both?". WAtoday. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
  3. ^ "Western Australia records five new local COVID-19 cases as exposure sites grow". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 5 January 2022. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
  4. ^ "Explainer: why are Covid infection rates in Australia so high compared with other countries?". the Guardian. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2022.