As the most recent outbreak in NSW continues to grow, the unvaccinated limousine driver who is believed to be patient zero has shared his side of the story.
Though many are questioning how he was allowed to transport airline crew and how he became infected, the driver claims he doesn’t believe he is patient zero.
The driver spoke to Lauren Golman from A Current Affair, staying anonymous out of fear for his and his family’s safety, and Ms Golman relayed their conversation to ACA host Tracy Grimshaw.
The driver is eligible for the AstraZeneca vaccine but has yet to be vaccinated due to concerns related to a history of blood clots in his family.
“He says he has been working with his doctor, they talk regularly, they try to come up with some sort of plan but at this stage he is too afraid to have the AstraZeneca vaccine,” Ms Golman said.
He also told Ms Golman he was infected by another patron at the Belle Cafe in Vaucluse, as he wasn’t working between June 12 and June 14 and first tested positive on June 15.
“He feels he caught it out and around,” Ms Colman said.
“He told me a story about the fact that he was sitting next to a gentleman who looked like he was in his 30s, who was coughing and sneezing, he became worried, sitting next to that person and he thinks he caught it at Belle Cafe at Vaucluse.”
However, NSW Health believes he is patient zero.
Since he caught the Delta strain, which originated in India and has since been detected in the US, authorities believe he may have caught the virus from US aircrew sometime in the fortnight before June 11.
A police investigation into whether the driver violated health orders by not wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) such as a mask.
According to Ms Colman, the driver said he was wearing a mask and gloves and getting tested regularly.
Since the man and his wife tested positive, there have been 49 local cases, including 36 linked to the Bondi cluster.
This article originally appeared on Over60.