Lockdown extended in Brisbane as army patrols Sydney to enforce COVID restrictions

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Brisbane lockdown extended until Sunday, set to expire August 3, NSW has recorded 207 cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, Army patrols in Sydney to enforce stay-at-home restrictions

SYDNEY (Reuters) – The Australian state of Queensland on Monday extended its COVID-19 lockdown in Brisbane, as soldiers began patrolling Sydney to enforce stay-at-home rules as Australia struggles to stop the highly contagious Delta variant from spreading the coronavirus.

Queensland said it had detected 13 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours – the largest single-day rise the state has recorded in a year. The lockdown of Brisbane, Australia’s third largest city, was due to expire on Tuesday, but will remain in place until late Sunday.

“It’s starting to become clear that the initial lockdown will not be enough for the outbreak,” Queensland Deputy Premier Stephen Miles told reporters in Brisbane.

The rising new case numbers in two of the country’s largest cities come as concern grows about how Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s government will deal with the pandemic. Read more

Although Australia’s vaccination campaign has lagged behind many other advanced economies, it has so far been much better at keeping coronavirus numbers relatively low, with just under 34,400 cases. The death toll rose to 925 after the death of a man in his 90s in Sydney.

Australia is going through a cycle of immediate lockdown in many cities following the emergence of a fast-moving delta strain, and these restrictions are likely to continue until the country reaches a much higher level of vaccination coverage.

A lone bird passes through quiet Circular Quay train station during a lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Sydney, Australia, July 28, 2021. REUTERS/Lauren Elliott/File Photo

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Prime Minister Morrison has promised that a lockdown will be “less likely” once the country has vaccinated 70% of its population over the age of 16 – a proportion that is now up to 19%. Morrison expects to reach 70% by the end of the year. Read more

Meanwhile, the shutdown of Brisbane and many surrounding areas comes as Sydney, the country’s largest city, begins its sixth week under stay-at-home orders.

Sydney, home of New South Wales, said on Monday it had detected 207 cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours with daily new cases remaining near a 16-month high recorded late last week.

The state has recorded more than 3,500 infections since the outbreak began in June, when a limousine driver contracted the virus while transporting the crew of a foreign airline, and asked the military to help with efforts to enforce the restrictions. Read more

About 300 military personnel, who will be unarmed and under police command, on Monday began house-to-house visits to make sure people who tested positive are isolated in their homes.

Military personnel also escorted police officers around the streets of the Sydney areas where most COVID-19 cases have been recorded. Footage posted online showed police asking the few people encountered on the street why they were leaving their homes on the largely deserted streets of southwest Sydney.

($1 = 1.3624 Australian dollars)

Reporting by Ringo Jose. Editing by Michael Perry and Kenneth Maxwell

Our Standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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