Coronavirus World update | Traces of COVID virus detected in Brisbane's sewage samples

Fragments of the COVID-19 were found in wastewater collected from Brisbane suburbs of Wynnum and Sandgate as well as Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast in Australia.

The presence of the viral fragments of COVID-19 in sewage water suggests there is undetected community transmission circulating in the south-east, reported Brisbane Times citing Queensland Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young.

The samples were taken at the Sandgate treatment plant on October 12 and the Maroochydore and Wynnum plants on October 13. The result confirmed the presence of virus fragments, said the report.

The health official, however, said the result has nothing to cause panic. “We have got to remember these positive COVID-19 tests are not people, they are in sewerage,” she said.

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Young said the reason behind the presence of viral fragments of COVID-19 in wastewater is probably because of someone who has recovered from the viral infection and is still shedding the virus.

An investigation is underway to find out why viral particles of COVID-19 have been found in the sewage water, said the report.

The health official said they have no idea how long someone can continue to shed the virus.

In a similar incident in June, scientists in India had detected genetic material of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in wastewater. The study, led by scientists in the Indian Institute of Technology (Gandhinagar), found that increased “gene copies" of the virus in Ahmedabad’s wastewater matched the incidence of the disease in Gujarat’s city.

(With inputs from PTI)

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