New South Wales has recorded 31 new locally acquired Covid cases, with the premier, Gladys Berejiklian, saying the increased numbers represent a “lag” from before greater Sydney entered lockdown.
Berejiklian said she expected case numbers to continue to rise, and that the effect of the state’s lockdown woud only begin to show in the coming days.
“We are anticipating there could be an increase in numbers over the next few days, then hopefully early next week we should see the impact of the lockdown really turning and having a positive impact,” the premier told reporters on Friday.
Twelve of the new cases were active in the community while infectious, and only 11 of them were in isolation throughout their entire infectious period. Berejiklian said this was “concerning”.
“I do want to stress that this pretty much reflects the days just before, and the day when we went into lockdown, so what we saw today is a lag of the last couple of days before we went into lockdown,” the premier said.
The chief health officer, Dr Kerry Chant, refused to comment on whether the lockdown will be extended, saying authorities will focus on the cases that were out in community.
“I am not commenting at all about the future settings. What I can say is that the factors we consider closely is those infectious days in the community,” she said.
“What we need to look at is increasing numbers of people isolated for the full period, the number of unlinked chains of transmission, the settings of those cases.
“All of these factors will influence our decision making.”
Of the new cases, 27 are linked to previous cases, 17 of them are household contacts and four cases are under investigation. Three of the new cases have been admitted to intensive care.
Eight of the new cases are linked to the student nurse who tested positive earlier in the week, with nine positive healthcare workers now linked to that case.
Another case was linked to the West Hoxton birthday party, bringing the total number of infections linked to the event to 42.
Chant said contact tracers were seeing a shift in the venues of concern, away from hospitality and to retail settings.
“Please don’t go out and about shopping in retail, in any setting, if you have got symptoms,” she said.
“As people are moving around in shopping centres, please do assume that you are next to someone who may have Covid, ensure you are wearing a mask at all times, and ensure that it covers your nose and mouth – and also, please keep your distance.”
A record number of people were tested in the 24 hours to 8pm on Thursday. More than 73,000 people were swabbed, topping the previous record of 69,000 set in December.
There have now been 226 locally acquired cases in the state since 16 June, with 188 linked to the Bondi cluster.
WA and NT lift lockdowns
The Perth and Peel region will exit lockdown from midnight on Friday, after recording only one new case who was not in the community while infectious.
The WA premier, Mark McGowan, said the new case was in quarantine since Sunday.
“We do not believe she has been in the community while infectious,” he said.
McGowan said some restrictions would remain in place over the next three days, before the state returns to “normal”.
The restrictions include a mask mandate for outdoors and indoors, as well as on public transport. Private gatherings will be limited to 10 visitors indoors and 20 outdoors, with all public venues able to reopen but only under the 4 sqm rule. Weddings and funerals will also be limited to 20 guests.
Darwin and Alice Springs emerged from lockdown on Friday afternoon, after the Northern Territory recorded one new locally acquired case overnight.
The chief minister, Michael Gunner, said the territory was “still in a dangerous period” but welcomed the opportunity to bring forward the end of the lockdown.
“We are bringing that forward based on the latest health advice. I know it’s been a bit of a wild ride but we are really happy with what’s come through overnight, especially the rapid testing from the Stuart Park site and we can now transition out of the lockdown.”
Some restrictions will remain until 1pm on Friday 9 July, including a mask mandate in public, as well as on public transport. All patrons at hospitality venues must remain seated, gyms and markets will remain closed, and private gatherings will be limited to 10 people.
Baby tests positive in SA
South Australia has recorded one new locally acquired case – the baby of the miner who tested positive on Wednesday.
The baby’s positive result means all six members of the miner’s family have now been infected with the Delta variant.
The chief public health officer, Prof Nicola Spurrier, said the baby, who is less than 12 months old, remained “clinically well”. But she said the condition of the mine worker had deteriorated overnight.
“Unfortunately the miner is still very unwell and he may be needing to go to the Royal Adelaide (Hospital) for another assessment,” she said.
The South Australian premier, Steven Marshall, said he was happy with the current level of restrictions in the state, which included a mask mandate and capacity limits on indoor venues.
“We think we’ve got the balance right,” Marshall said. “I think the earliest we would see a reduction [of restrictions] would be next week.”
New case in Queensland
A new Covid case on the Sunshine Coast was reported on Friday afternoon, but Queensland health authorities lifted lockdown as planned at 6pm for all regions except Brisbane and Moreton Bay. They will remain in lockdown until 6pm on Saturday.
The state recorded four cases on Friday. The chief health officer, Dr Jeannette Young, said she was confident to lift restrictions as planned on the Sunshine Coast despite the positive case as the man had spent a limited time in the community while infectious.
