On an almost daily basis, the West Australian Government has been fundamentally changing the lives of its citizens in ways that often felt unimaginable just weeks prior.

For the man at the centre of it, the pace of change has been almost dizzying.

"It is surreal," WA Premier Mark McGowan said this week, reflecting on perhaps the most dramatic period his state has seen in the 75 years since World War II drew to a close.

"This is similar to a war.

"In wartime everyone joins forces and works together. That is what we are going through now."

The rapidly changing situation is a phenomenon that has been repeated throughout WA's battle against COVID-19, which in a matter of weeks has escalated from a concern in another hemisphere to a virus infecting people across a vast state.

Most prominently, the idea of locking down WA's border was at first dismissed by the State Government as unfeasible, unnecessary and potentially unconstitutional.

Barely a fortnight later, WA is putting up a 'closed' sign.

Eastern staters who do not meet an exemption will be refused entry, and the Government is even warning some West Australians on the other side of the country might not be allowed back home.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 3 minutes 37 seconds 3 m 37 s Premier Mark McGowan announces WA's borders will be closed from midnight Sunday, April 5.

No apologies for state of emergency

That is far from the only issue to drastically change within days — huge shifts in circumstances have forced complete rethinks of once-adamant positions about schools, industries and cruise ships.

But the once-unthinkable restrictions on so many aspects of the daily lives of West Australians are something Mr McGowan makes no apology for.

"We are in a state of emergency, which we have never declared before in Western Australia," he said, in a one-on-one interview with ABC News this week.

"We are trying to deal with this in ways that protect people … to make sure we have less people in our hospitals and less spread of the virus.

"To do that, you have got to do some very unconventional and unprecedented things."

WA COVID-19 snapshot Confirmed cases so far: 661

Confirmed cases so far: 661 Recovered: 648

Recovered: 648 Deaths: 9

Deaths: 9 Total tests: 392,908 Latest information from the WA Health Department





For the leaders trying to usher WA through the crisis, the personal toll has been heavy.

For Mr McGowan, Health Minister Roger Cook and key executives and advisors, days that were already long now more closely resembled marathons — with officials left scrambling to keep pace with near-constant changes of the situation.

But the Premier was not looking for sympathy, pointing instead to business owners who have had to shut their doors or the scores of people now out of work.

"It is not easy," Mr McGowan said of managing WA's coronavirus response.

"But my life is a lot better than the lives of a lot of other people."

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Leadership embraced by the community

Mr McGowan and Mr Cook have won significant support from across the community for their response in a time of crisis.

Social media comments, so typically a vehicle for MPs to be criticised and even abused, have lavished the Premier with a level of widespread praise few politicians ever receive — particularly on the live streams of his daily briefings most media outlets are running.

The community has been widely supportive of WA Premier Mark McGowan's COVID-19 response. ( ABC News: Hugh Sando )

Mr McGowan came to office with an agenda based around public transport, job creation and managing state finances. Now his legacy appears almost certain to be defined by WA's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Much of that initial platform has been put to one side as limiting the health consequences of COVID-19 becomes the priority, but Mr McGowan cautioned it was important to minimise the economic impact as much as possible.

"I am so concerned about all those people losing their livelihoods and those businesses that may never reopen," he said.

"We are looking at more restrictions, but I am looking at that through the prism of trying to preserve jobs and don't — unless absolutely necessary — close down more industries and more businesses," he said.

But the Premier admitted the economy would look "incredibly different" at the end of the pandemic.

"The economic impact I think will roll on for years," he said.

He said that meant the state needed to keep some spending capacity up its sleeve to lead a post-pandemic economic recovery.

"What we have got to do is, at the end of this, have a recovery plan in place," he said.

Unity emerges amid pandemic

Much of Mr McGowan's time over the past weeks has been spent in national cabinet video hook-ups and in discussions with other state leaders on the side.

WA officials have said the national cabinet process has worked exceptionally well, with particularly high praise directed towards Prime Minister Scott Morrison's handling of the situation.

It's an unusual view for a state Labor government to have of a Liberal Prime Minister, but it's a sign of the times and the extent to which traditional party lines have almost evaporated in the national cabinet process.

That theme was at the centre of Mr McGowan's main plea to West Australians — a call for understanding, unity and working together in a situation he likened to a war.

"Keep your chins up, but don't get complacent," he said.

"Listen to the instructions, take the advice and let's work together to get through this."