New South Wales is flirting with further shutdowns as at least two pubs close over COVID-19 infections and the Victorian situation worsens.
Today Victoria reported the largest single day increase in cases of COVID-19 to date in Australia, official numbers being 288 new positive tests, bringing the state’s active case tally to 1,172. This week borders were closed again and locked down precincts expanded, restrictions currently slated to remain for at least another six weeks.
Yet on Tuesday, a plane from Melbourne to Sydney unloaded travellers, who were allowed to leave without any health checks.
On Wednesday NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian warned tighter restrictions could soon begin again and state authorities are stepping up compliance, given the chances of contagion from Victoria is “extremely high”. The Premier suggests NSW residents avoid border towns such as Albury.
Dr Kerry Chant, Chief Health Officer of NSW, reported today there were eight new cases detected in the past 24 hours, with seven of them being people in hotel quarantine. The eighth was a woman in her 30s in south-west Sydney.
However, the announcement was later updated to say a man in his 50s in the same area had also tested positive. It was soon found they had attended the Crossroads Hotel in Casula on the same day – separately – prompting call for the Hotel to close for testing and tracing.
The announcement was later updated again, relaying that the pair had been at the Hotel on Friday, 3 July, not Saturday 4 July as previously reported.
Separately, a Victorian teenager flew to Sydney with his family to holiday in Merimbula, after the family had been advised their COVID tests were negative. The family does not normally reside in what are Melbourne’s hot spots.
It was only after their arrival in NSW they were contacted about an error and that the teen’s test was positive, igniting a scare at the Tathra Hotel they were visiting, which promptly announced it would be closed for a while.
The owners relayed on social media that all staff working would need to be tested and were “not allowed back” without a negative result, prompting the “very disappointing” fourth time it has had to shut the doors since recent renovations.
“So the hotel is closed due to a staff shortage rather than any health orders,” they explained on social media.
Victoria’s chief health officer, Professor Brett Sutton, grimly noted that testing figures are always behind reality and the case for even tighter restrictions is in flux.
“The effect of the lockdown, we will really only be seeing in the numbers in the next one to two weeks. We may well get worse numbers to follow.
“We need to know where the cases are occurring, if community transmission is established in Geelong, it would make the case stronger.”
Premier Daniel Andrews is encouraging the widespread use of masks, but it is not yet deemed mandatory.
The Victorian health department is currently managing the tracing more than 5,000 contacts of people who have tested positive, making for an enormous logistical task.
The Andrews Government has also just announced roll-out of a new $534 million support package for businesses being impacted by this new wave of infections and the subsequent closures, with hospitality businesses to see a dedicated fund of $30 million.