Sydney faces longer curfew and closure as outbreak grows in Delta Australia Coronavirus

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Sydney’s coronavirus lockdown has been extended for another month, as swathes of the city face a curfew from Monday, as authorities battle an outbreak in the Delta region that has seen record numbers of cases this week.

New South Wales reported 642 new local cases and four deaths on Friday, prompting Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian to require that masks be worn outdoors across the state at all times except while exercising.

From Monday, curfews will be imposed in West Sydney council areas of concern and the city’s lockdown – which has put five million people under stay-at-home orders since late June – has been extended until September 30.

In all, half of Australia’s 25 million people are now in lockdown, with the states of Victoria and the Australian Capital Territory also responding to the outbreak.

NSW residents now face tougher police measures, with greater enforcement and increased fines as authorities struggle to contain the spread of the virulent Delta strain. Among the new cases on Friday, the isolation status of more than 500 is still under investigation.

The measures also divided the state capital from the surrounding areas, with a permit required from Saturday for people traveling between Greater Sydney and elsewhere in the state.

Berejiklian and Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant have repeatedly denied the efficacy of the curfew in recent weeks, but on Friday chose to implement a 9pm-5am curfew in 12 city districts.

“While the evidence for curfews is mixed, the evidence for a lot of these things is mixed,” Berejiklian said on Friday. “But I don’t want us to have to look back and say we didn’t try, we didn’t put everything in it.”

NSW Covid-19 update: Sydney lockdown extended until September 30 as state records 644 new cases – VIDEO

People in these areas will also be restricted to one hour of exercise, and NSW Police will be given the authority to shut down entire apartment complexes in the event of an outbreak.

The state will also make Covid vaccinations mandatory for all health care workers by the end of next month, and for child care workers and disability support workers in council areas of concern by August 30.

About 80 healthcare workers at St George’s Hospital, Sydney, are isolating this week due to exposure to Covid in an oncology ward.

Just over 55% of people aged over 16 in NSW have received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine, with 29% fully vaccinated.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Thursday that all Australians over the age of 16 will be eligible to be vaccinated from August 30, and the program officially opened to an additional 8.6 million people.

But while the national cabinet has supported extending the program to young Australians, who are more likely to spread the virus due to high mobility, it is understood that the prime minister had not advised state and territory leaders of the decision ahead of Thursday’s announcement.

New South Wales is looking at ways to give vaccinated people more freedom in September when the state hit 6 million strikes, but it has not yet defined this plan.

But the Australian Medical Association warned the New South Wales government to “risk” loosening any restrictions. “We’ve seen in NSW and beyond that once the delta virus has spread, it’s hard to contain,” said President Omar Khurshid.

In Melbourne, in the neighboring state of Victoria, playgrounds, skate parks, basketball courts and outdoor gyms remained closed as the city entered the third week of the sixth Covid lockdown.

And in neighboring New Zealand, which has also followed a zero-case strategy, it is battling its new delta-fueled outbreak. The cluster of cases in the country grew to 31 on Friday, spreading from Auckland to the capital, Wellington.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern extended a strict nationwide coronavirus lockdown on Friday, saying the full extent of the delta outbreak remains unknown. Ardern said at a news conference that the closure would continue until midnight on Tuesday.

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