SA Health updates COVID-19 exposure locations after nearly a week. Dog and Duck nightclubs are listed.

SA Health’s exposure site list has expanded almost one week after its last update. A Hindley Street nightclub was added to the list.

Previous delays in updating the list caused a backlash, with a social media group that attracted thousands of followers after it took contact tracing and crowdsourcing exposure sites into its own hands.

However, SA Health has confirmed that it is in the process of overhauling its contact tracing processes and will not list every confirmed case.

Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier stated that exposure sites that are also deemed high-risk would be prioritized.

Professor Spurrier stated that “the rapid increase in South Australia’s cases means it is difficult to list every location where every positive case visited.”

SA Health announced late on Sunday night that it had added three contact points, including the Dog and Duck club, which will be open from 10 to 11 p.m. on New Year’s Eve.

Also, the Exchange Hotel in Gawler was listed as an exposure Sunday night — one week after a case had been at the hotel.

The West Augusta Football Club Gym, Port Augusta, was the third location. It was visible at various times between December 28 and December 30.

Dog and Duck advertised their New Year’s Eve celebrations with a poke at the current caps at home gatherings.

“Hindley Street is open. Why party with ten friends when you can have a great time with hundreds?” The nightclub was posted to social media.

The Dog and Duck’s Facebook page also criticizes Premier Steven Marshall’s handling of COVID and restrictions imposed upon hospitality venues on Boxing Day.

Due to current restrictions, one person can only operate hospitality venues per 4 m2.

The Premier posted a question on December 27 to the club’s Facebook page.

“Question, Steven Marshall, you stated six weeks back that ‘we have 400 beds ready for COVID-related patients’. Now, we have 20 people in hospital, and you have put restrictions in place that effectively put us back into lockdown because we can’t allow this to get out of control,” the post said.

The nightclub also criticized the response to Loverboy nightclub’s incident in which a 19-year-old man went to the lounge even though he was COVID-positive.

Even though patrons and staff had been double-vaccinated, any person at the venue on the evening of the exposure needed to be tested for the virus and isolated for seven days.

The Dog and Duck shared on Facebook on December 24 that this was a crippling situation for businesses and would force them to close while their employees were isolated.

The post stated, “If you own a business or know of someone who does, there is a high chance that your business will fail in the next two months.”

The SA opposition was harshly critical on Sunday of delays in updating the state’s exposed site list.

Chris Picton, a Labor health spokesperson, said that it had been nearly a week since any exposure sites were notified.

Although we’ve received thousands to thousands of cases over the past week, we last saw exposure sites listed a few days ago.

“There are a lot of exposure sites, but our contact tracing needs to be better.

SA Health stated that it was reorganizing its contact trace practices and will not list every site visited by a confirmed case.

Professor Spurrier stated that SA Health would prioritize sites considered high-risk.

Professor Spurrier stated, “as the pandemic develops, we will make further adjustments to our contact tracing, and these will be foreshadowed whenever necessary.”