Covid 19 coronavirus: Sydney North Beaches cluster rises again

New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian has reported 23 new cases of coronavirus in the state and will impose a closure for the North Beaches area starting at 5pm (local time) today.

21 of the new cases are related to the northern beach group and 2 remain under investigation.

The prime minister said the state is likely to see a repeat of those numbers in the coming days.

“Based on the probability that we expect to see a repetition of those numbers throughout these 24 hours, given what we know about the tests, given what we know about the probable number of cases, we are going to issue health orders that the beaches North as of 5 am today essentially revert to the restrictions that people experienced in March, “he said.

That means, for residents within the Northern Beaches area, only leaving home for essential purposes such as work, compassionate reasons, exercise, or shopping.

Berejiklian also urged people who may have plans in the city to “consider changing those plans to stay at home”, warning that “we do not want the virus to spread outside the northern beaches.”

New South Wales Health Minister Brad Hazzard told northern beach dwellers to cancel any plans they have and “take it seriously” as the outbreak continues to grow.

“If you have lunches with a lot of friends today, cancel it. If you are going out to important functions this afternoon, cancel it,” Hazzard said.

“If you go to a gym, hopefully the gyms have closed, they will be closed at 5 PM, but I wouldn’t go to a gym. We have an outbreak in Avalon, we know the numbers are increasing, but we do know that we have to be very cautious. “

Mystery surrounds ‘patient zero’

Health authorities in New South Wales are not yet confident that they have found the original source of the outbreak, making it difficult to ensure all transmission routes are investigated.

Genomic tests show the virus likely came from the United States, yet NSW Health Director Kerry Chant said Thursday that her “anxiety” was that “we have not found the direct route of transmission.”

This means that officials cannot be sure that they have “blocked all transmission lines.”

University of Queensland virologist Professor Ian Mackay told ABC that finding the original source was critical.

“If we can find the index case, that means we can work from there to make sure all the contacts have been identified,” he said.

“If we can’t find the source, there is always the possibility that some cases have been missed.”

Northern beaches in “voluntary” blockade

Photos have shown that the Northern Beaches community already entered a “voluntary” shutdown last night.

The generally crowded Manly Corso area was deserted Friday night after 28 coronavirus cases were linked to the beachside suburbs.

Across the northern beaches, most of the pubs also chose to close.

Earlier on Friday, Berejiklian asked residents to stay home for essential reasons. “Do not leave your house,” Berejiklian implored the 250,000 people who live in the North Beaches area.

Response from other states

The Sydney outbreak has led to a rapid response from other Australian states and territories. An overview of each:

Victory

Victoria has introduced a traffic light system.

The northern beaches and other exposure sites are ‘red zones’, and travelers cannot enter Victoria from today without 14 days in quarantine.

Greater Sydney is an ‘orange zone’, and people traveling to Victoria are encouraged to seek a test upon arrival and to self-quarantine until they receive a negative result.

Regional NSW is a “green zone”, and people traveling to Victoria from this area are asked to watch for symptoms.

Queensland

Queensland has declared the northern beaches as a hotspot for the coronavirus. Anyone who has been to a hot spot cannot enter Queensland without 14 days of mandatory quarantine.

Western australia

Western Australia has implemented a mandatory 14-day quarantine for anyone arriving from New South Wales. The state remains open to introducing a hard border in the “near future.”

South Australia

In South Australia, anyone who has visited the northern beaches since December 11 will be required to be quarantined for 14 days.

Northern Territory

The Northern Territory declared northern beaches a coronavirus hotspot and will require residents of the area to enter mandatory supervised quarantine.

Tasmania

In Tasmania, travelers who have been to the northern beaches must apply for a travel permit. Tasmanians wanting to return to the state must provide proof of residency and can complete their quarantine at home.