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AUSTRALIA’S state of New South Wales reported its biggest daily rise in COVID-19 cases this year from local transmission on Saturday (7/10), with authorities warning worse conditions could be expected in Sydney, which is under a three-week lockdown.
Citing Reuters, there were 50 new cases of community transmission in the country’s most populous state, up from 44 the day before, the previous record high in 2021. This brought the Delta variant outbreak to 489.
Of Saturday’s cases, 26 were people who had spent time in the community when they were contagious, deepening fears that the lockdown of more than 5 million people in Sydney and beyond will be extended.
“When you know that there are 26 cases of infection in the community, the only conclusion we can draw is that things will get worse before they get better,” state Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian said in a televised news conference.
“I think it’s pretty clear that unless we reduce the rate of people in the community being infectious, we’re not going to be able to turn things around as quickly as we can or as quickly as we should.”
There are 47 cases in hospital, or about one in 10 people infected in the current outbreak. Of these, 19 are under the age of 55 and 16 are in intensive care, including a teenager.
None of the fully vaccinated people required hospitalization and 79% of those treated had not received any dose, health authorities said. Vaccination is available in Australia at this time only for people over 40 years of age and those in a risk group either because of their health or their job.
The country has fared far better than many other developed countries at keeping COVID-19 rates relatively low, but its vaccination rollout is among the slowest due to supply constraints and changes in medical advice for its flagship AstraZeneca. [antaranews/photo special]
