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Infected ride-share driver Duran Raman is reliant on high-flow oxygen, CHO says

Alex Druce and James HallNCA NewsWire
Not Supplied
Camera IconNot Supplied Credit: Supplied

The unvaccinated Gold Coast man who contracted Covid-19 has deteriorated and he may need to be placed in intensive care, according to Queensland’s top doctor.

Duran Raman, aged in his 30s, has been named as the man from Broadbeach who on Thursday broke Queensland’s 15-day streak without a locally acquired case.

Police are investigating if the man, who worked as a ride-share driver, crossed the Queensland border illegally, but chief health officer Jeannette Young said he’s “very unwell” and currently unable to provide information to authorities.

“They’re keeping a very close eye on him – he’s on high-flow oxygen and he’ll probably need to go into intensive care,” the top doctor told reporters on Friday morning.

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“That is terrible. He is a very young, fit man who was not vaccinated and he’s now extremely sick.

QLD_GCB_NEWS_BODYCORPORATE_4JAN20_PAYNE
Camera IconPremier Annastacia Palaszczuk noted on Thursday that there were still 156,000 unvaccinated residents on the Gold Coast who were particularly vulnerable to the disease. Picture Glenn Hampson Credit: News Corp Australia

“He was so sick that he probably hasn’t been out in the community, so we don’t have exposure venues for him other than his place of residence.

“He’s in the Gold Coast University Hospital and over the last 24 hours he’s deteriorated, so he needs more oxygen. Sometimes when high-flow oxygen is inadequate, then they need to go on a ventilator.”

There were no new locally acquired cases in Queensland on Friday, but authorities are desperately trying to track the man’s movements after he spent 10 days infectious in the community before testing positive to the virus.

However, inquiries have been hampered by the fact he is too sick to speak.

The Queensland government had earlier announced Mr Raman had not used the Covid-19 check-in app since early September.

The state government said Mr Raman is believed to have left Queensland in September, with Dr Young saying the man spent some time in Melbourne.

Media is reporting the Covid-infected man to be Duran Raman.
Camera IconThe Covid-infected man Duran Raman. Credit: Supplied

The government on Thursday said he arrived back on the Gold Coast – where he lives alone in an apartment at the Island Beach Resort – around October 10, and may have even been infectious for a couple of days before then.

Mr Raman was an Uber driver, but the company confirmed he had not driven with them since September 19.

He has been living at Broadbeach for about a year and played Aussie rules football on the Gold Coast earlier in 2021.

Authorities are now trying to figure out how he re-entered the state.

Mr Raman was taken to hospital by ambulance on Wednesday after becoming increasingly sick over a number of days and on Thursday was requiring oxygen.

The Island Beach resort is now an exposure site, with anyone there from October 16 to 19 listed as casual contacts.

Island Beach Resort, Broadbeach is where Duran Raman is living, Duran is in Gold Coast University Hospital suffering from Covid -19
Camera IconIsland Beach Resort, Broadbeach is where Duran Raman is living, Duran is in Gold Coast University Hospital suffering from Covid -19 Credit: Supplied

He also visited Gilly Barber in Richlands, but because of the severity of his illness, Dr Young said it was likely he had been confined to his home.

Capalaba Labor MP Don Brown shared the story of Mr Raman on Facebook as an example of why people should get the jab.

“Just because you’re 30, lift some weights and eat a lot of protein, doesn’t mean you won’t end up in ICU from Covid,” Mr Brown wrote.

“Get vaccinated!”

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk noted on Thursday there were still 156,000 unvaccinated residents on the Gold Coast who were particularly vulnerable to the disease.

She urged residents of the region to get the jab and boost Queensland’s flagging vaccination numbers before the state opens its borders on December 17.

Originally published as Infected ride-share driver Duran Raman is reliant on high-flow oxygen, CHO says

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