Two million residents across eight western Sydney local government areas will soon face a set of strict new restrictions as health authorities continue to battle an outbreak of the virulent Delta strain.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian made the announcement after revealing New South Wales had recorded 239 new locally acquired COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8pm Wednesday.
Of the record number of cases - which surpasses the 212 cases recorded on March 27, 2020 - at least 88 were in the community for all or part of their infectious period.
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Two people - a southwest Sydney woman in her 90s and a man in his 80s - also died, taking the toll for the current outbreak to 13.
“We can only assume that things are likely to get worse before they get better given the quantum of people infectious in the community,” Berejiklian told reporters.
As a result, new measures will target eight council areas - collectively home to more people than Perth - including Canterbury-Bankstown, Fairfield, Liverpool, Blacktown, Cumberland, Parramatta, Campbelltown and Georges River.
“Depending on the health advice, there could be more local government areas that come into those areas of concern or there could be those that come out depending on how case numbers are going,” the premier said.
Residents in these areas cannot currently leave their local government areas unless they are an authorised worker.
New restrictions
From 12.01am on Friday, residents in the eight virus-hit areas will also be subject to new exercise, mask and shopping rules.
- Exercise, outdoor recreation and singles bubble visits must be done within 5km of the person’s home
- Individuals cannot travel more than 5km for shopping, unless the goods or services are not readily available in that area
- Masks must be worn at all times outside the home regardless of proximity to others
“If you step foot outside your household, you need to wear a mask at all times. It doesn’t matter where it is,” Berejiklian said.
“We’re seeing too much evidence of people who are not wearing masks when they need to, or if they are outdoors, they’re coming into contact with other people and not having a mask.”
The penalty for breaching a mask rule will also increase from $200 to $500 statewide.
Greater Sydney and surrounding regions will remain in lockdown until at least August 28.
- with AAP