As of now people seeking asylum on Christmas Island will have to wait to be transferred to mainland Australia, after typhoid fever was detected on the island.
The Immigration Department has confirmed that two crew members on separate asylum boats have been diagnosed with typhoid, The Australian reports. A spokeswoman says they were immediately isolated and one of the men has since been transferred to a hospital on the mainland. The department says it is working with local and state health authorities to ensure the disease does not spread to Christmas Island residents. There are just under 1,500 asylum seekers on the island.
This has sparked action. The federal government has stopped flights from the island to the mainland while the Immigration Department and health authorities investigate and try to contain the disease, according to reports.
Typhoid is a bacterial disease that causes symptoms such as fever, headache, rash and vomiting. The disease is rarely seen in Australia. Christmas Island's deputy administrator, Catherine Wildermuth, told residents in a newsletter that the risk of typhoid being passed on the community was extremely low.
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