Close to 30 tenants of a Windale unit complex have returned negative results after they were tested for COVID-19 after a resident was confirmed to have caught the virus, Wesley Mission says.
The 52-year-old resident travelled to Marayong in Blacktown - which is one of 12 Sydney hotspot council areas - to visit and stay with a friend and returned at the weekend.
The man was issued a $1000 Penalty Infringement Notice (PIN) on Sunday and directed not to leave his apartment.
He was then advised he had tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday night.
Police said they attended the Windale apartment complex for a welfare check about 9.45am Tuesday, and the man's condition had deteriorated, so he was taken to hospital for treatment.
The 32 unit complex is managed by Wesley Mission, which said on Wednesday testing was taking place for the 29 other tenants. A decision on how long the residents will need to isolate for will hinge on test results.
A Wesley Mission spokeswoman said on Thursday that "all tests yesterday" had been negative for COVID.
"While tenants are being tested and continue to isolate, they will receive support jointly from the local Wesley Community Housing team, Hunter New England Health and other agencies in collaboration," a statement from Wesley Mission on Wednesday said.
The public health unit had advised that anyone who has visited the property from the evening of Friday, August 20 to the morning of Tuesday, August 24 must get tested and isolate until a negative result is received. This includes any visitors to this location.
In an unrelated incident, police attended the same complex about 9pm Monday in response to a noise complaint in a unit. They said four men - aged between 40 and 52 - were drinking and listening to loud music. All four were given $1000 PINs and directed to return to their own units. The man who tested positive to COVID-19 was not one of the four men.
Wesley Mission CEO Rev Stu Cameron said the service was continuing to keep tenants updated on the situation.
"We are continuing to keep the tenants updated, and we're hearing from them regularly too with questions and needs," he said. "We will continue to provide information as the health response is enacted."
Member for Charlestown Jodie Harrison called on the Health Minister Brad Hazzard to deliver a targeted vaccination program in Windale. Vaccination rates in Windale are lower than surrounding suburbs, with only 20-29 per cent of people fully vaccinated.
"The government must act quickly to get vaccines into the arms of people living in this community," Jodie Harrison said.
"I have written to the Health Minister urging him to act now. Access to vaccines in this area has to be improved.
"I have been watching the vaccination program targeted at suburbs in Western and South Western Sydney, an area of concern, and want to recognise and applaud the hard work of all involved in increasing the vaccination rates occurring there.
"I am urging the Health Minister to do the same for the people of Windale."
