A former navy officer and firefighter, who was seconded to work in Victoria’s hotel quarantine program, quit after just four weeks over concerns of improper training of PPE and the poor level of hygiene standards, the inquiry into Victorian hotel quarantine has heard.
A security guard also told the inquiry he had concerns about cross-contamination from staff working across hotels.
Former firefighter Luke Ashford, who took a secondment from Parks Victoria in late May to join the Department of Health and Human Services, worked across seven quarantine hotels in his four weeks as an authorised officer.
He told the inquiry he was neither provided PPE training nor given full induction on the requirements of the role before he started.
He said he used PPE when working in the hotel, and had to rely on his own intuition.
Apart from “green zones” in hotels where signs told people not to wear used PPE, he said it wasn’t clear when and how it should be used.
“For me it was my own personal need, and want, and ideas for when I should use it.”
Ashford asked his superiors if he should attend work after learning a colleague, with whom he shared rides to work, was identified as a close contact of the outbreak at the Stamford Plaza hotel.
He was told he should, and turned up for work at the Mercure Welcome. Ashford said it was difficult to maintain social distancing at the hotel, due to the number of staff and returned travellers, and after his shift, he decided to quit the role.
“I did not feel this was a safe environment to work in. I was concerned for my health and the health of my family,” he said.
“I’m used to working in dangerous environments, having worked in firefighting and in the military, but I could not rely on the system or people around me to keep the environment safe.”
The former firefighter said he felt his concerns were not being addressed, indicating there was very little follow up from DHHS after his resignation.
When Ashford was questioned by lawyers representing one of the security firms, it was put to him that without adequate PPE knowledge, he was unsuitable to work in a hotel quarantine environment. Ashford responded: “Yeah, that would be correct.”
A guard, referred to by the inquiry as Security Guard 1, told the inquiry he was concerned after learning of guards, nurses, and DHHS staff working across multiple hotels, and alleged some guards who were let go by one subcontractor, were seen working in other hotels later on.
“Considering how ridiculously communicable this virus is, I just thought that, you know, that was asking for trouble,” he said.
Improper PPE training and use has been a recurring theme of the hearings this week. Multiple returned travellers and nurses, who worked in the system that led to more than 99% of the state’s current cases, reported a lack of adherence to proper PPE usage guidelines in potential Covid-19 environments.
