Western Australia uncovers 'possible' new community COVID-19 case in FIFO worker

Western Australia has recorded a possible new community case of COVID-19 in a fly-in-fly-out worker, Premier Mark McGowan has revealed.

The FIFO worker flew to Fortescue Metals Group's Cloudbreak mine on July 20.

He was at the airport at the same time as a positive COVID-19 case who flew in from Queensland after completing hotel quarantine there.

While investigations are still underway, health authorities believe this is the "most plausible explanation" for the man recently testing positive.

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Mr McGowan said the man had returned a "very weak positive" test result, first testing positive before testing negative.

The man is asymptomatic and likely not currently infectious, but "the suspicion is that he may well have been positive at some point in time while in the community".

The premier noted that to "further complicate matters", the man had also contracted the coronavirus after returning from overseas in March last year.

This means it is possible that the positive result was from a long-term shedding of the virus, but health experts believed this was "unlikely".

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The man worked at the FMG Cloudbreak mine site between July 20 and July 27 before returning to Perth, where it's understood he has since spent time in the Greenwood, Subiaco and Fremantle areas.

The man's girlfriend and one of his closest work colleagues have so far tested negative.

It is the first case of community transmission in the state in a number of weeks.

WA Health Minister Roger Cook said the case was "unusual" but because he had previously been at the same place as another positive case, precautions are being taken.

"This is an unusual case, very unusual," Mr Cook said.

"The only reason we are taking these steps is because he returned weak positive results across a number of platforms and had that shared (exposure site) with a positive case from Queensland."

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Health authorities are asking everyone who was at Perth Airport on July 20 and July 27 between 4am and 7am to get tested and isolate until they receive a negative result.

Mr McGowan said that health authorities believed it was possible the man contracted the virus but, due to it being his second infection, was not infectious to others.