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Sydney – Australia’s largest city – closed until July 9
The Covid outbreak in Sydney linked to the highly contagious Delta variant has grown to 128.
A small number of positive infections were also recorded in the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia.
This is the first time in months that cases have appeared in multiple parts of the country at the same time.
State and territory leaders will meet Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Monday for an emergency meeting.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said Australia was facing a “critical time” in its fight against Covid, as various countries closed borders and imposed new restrictions to prevent the virus from spreading further.
“I think we are entering a new phase of this pandemic, with the most contagious Delta strain,” Frydenberg told ABC News Monday.
The escalation in Covid cases has led to the closures of Sydney and Darwin, as well as restrictions in four states.
The situation remains even more alarming in Sydney, where around 5 million residents are under a stay-at-home order.
The New South Wales (NSW) state government on Sunday extended its lockdown to all areas of Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, the Central Coast and Wollongong.
Sydney residents queued up for tests at the drive-in clinic in Bondi Beach
Orders were issued to close many businesses and places.
New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Monday reported 18 new cases, down from 30 reported the day before. Nearly 59,000 people have been tested in the past 24 hours.
“We have to be prepared for the numbers to jump, and we have to be prepared for the numbers to go up dramatically because with this strain we’re seeing nearly 100% of indoor transmission,” she said.
fast spread
While the two cases in Western Australia have been traced back to the Sydney outbreak, positive cases in Queensland and the Northern Territory have been linked to people who contracted the infection despite completing a hotel quarantine.
The story continues
The remote Northern Territory has recorded seven cases, prompting authorities to extend the lockdown of the capital, Darwin, on Monday through Friday.
Officials said the delta outbreak there has spread from a mining camp and now poses a significant risk to the community.
“For the first time, we have public display sites in the Northern Territory,” Prime Minister Michael Gunner said.
Authorities are also on alert after a Virgin Australia cabin crew member worked on five domestic flights while contracting a delta variant. The airline has contacted all affected passengers and crew.
hanging bubble travel
The outbreak led to the closure of some countries and the closure of international borders.
New Zealand has paused its quarantine-free travel bubble with all of Australia until at least Tuesday due to the latest outbreak.
The travel corridor between the two neighbors opened in April. Travel between New Zealand and certain Australian regions has been closed for short periods as outbreaks surfaced, but this is the first time the bubble has closed with the whole of Australia.
The streets in central Sydney were almost deserted on Monday morning
Australia has maintained very low rates of Covid transmission throughout the pandemic due to its closed border policy, strict quarantine and rapid testing and tracing regimes.
No deaths were recorded this year, but 910 deaths and 30,450 infections overall.
highly contagious variants
However, newer and more contagious Covid types have strained the country’s defenses – with several small outbreaks this year.
New South Wales Health Minister Brad Hazzard described Delta’s alternative as a “very formidable enemy”.
“No matter what defensive steps we take at the moment, the virus seems to understand how to counterattack,” he said.
The Sydney outbreak first emerged two weeks ago in Bondi, a popular beach suburb, before quickly spreading across the city.
His origin has been linked to an unprotected driver who picked up international arrivals from the airport.
Vaccination offer
The New South Wales government has urged people to get their vaccine – noting that in one Sydney cluster, 24 of the 30 people at a party became infected and those who were not vaccinated.
“If you are vaccinated, you are more likely to not get COVID-19,” Hazard told reporters on Monday.
Recent outbreaks have renewed criticism of the country’s slow introduction of vaccination – which falls under the purview of the federal government.
To date, just under 5% of the adult population in Australia has been fully vaccinated under a phased deployment, and about 30% have received a first dose of the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccine.
However, significant levels of hesitation have been reported about the AstraZeneca vaccine due to its association with the rare blood clotting syndrome. Meanwhile, Pfizer’s supplies were limited to certain age groups.
Government critics argued that cities would not need to tolerate lockdown if the majority of the population was vaccinated.
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