Covid-19 outbreaks along Australias east coast are continuing to grow with New South Wales reporting one new death and a record 291 new cases.
Meanwhile, Queenslands Delta outbreak has grown by 10 and Victorias by four following a night of maskless protests.
In the 24 hours to 8pm (local time) Thursday night, 291 cases had been confirmed in NSW. Of these cases, 120 were linked to an existing cluster and 171 were still having the source of infection investigated.
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NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian was expecting case numbers to continue to grow in the next few days.
Forty-eight of the confirmed cases were in the community while infectious. NSW Health was still investigating the isolation status of 104 cases.
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Premier Gladys Berejiklian said this spike in cases foreshadowed what was to come.
Were likely to see this trend continue for the next few days.
I do want everybody to prepare themselves for high case numbers … Just based on the trend in the last few days and the way things are going, I’m expecting higher case numbers.
Since June 15, when the source infection was first detected, 4610 cases had been confirmed. There were 304 cases in hospital, 50 of these were in intensive care with 22 requiring ventilation.
The death reported in the state was a woman in her 60s from southwest Sydney. She was exposed to the virus in hospital by a healthcare worker who worked across two wards, Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant confirmed.
NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said on Thursday she believed an outbreak in the Hunter region was caused by an infected person from the greater Sydney region breaching lockdown.
This outbreak had, so far, resulted in 22 deaths, including a 27-year-old man who died earlier this week.
Berejiklian said the number of fatalities recorded was tragic but without vaccinations, that figure wouldve been far far worse.
The Greater Sydney region was in lockdown until at least August 29, but the decision over whether restrictions would ease was based on the outbreaks status at that time.
The more people we get vaccinated, the sooner well be able to live more freely, Berejiklian said.
Once we hit the 70 per cent vaccination rate, life will be much easier, and, of course, once we hit the 80 per cent vaccination rate life will be as normal as we can expect during Covid.
Worker allegedly faked Covid test result
A 23-year-old man from Illawarra in Sydneys south was arrested and charged with fraud on Thursday for allegedly faking a positive Covid-19 test result.
The man told his employer on Monday that he tested positive to Covid-19, resulting in co-workers being told to isolate and get tested, and locations near his work being deep cleaned, according to NSW Police.
He later said a second test had come back negative, but after being questioned by NSW Health, he confessed.
Wollongong Police District Commander Acting Superintendent Brad Ainsworth told Sydneys 2GB radio station on Friday: As the term goes, they put the acid on him straight away to say their records dont add up and he just folded.
The man was charged with conveying false information that a person or property was in danger, and if found guilty, could face up to five years in jail. He was granted bail and would appear in court on September 14.
In addition to this, a teenager from western Sydney reportedly broke lockdown rules and travelled up the NSW coast to attend a beach party. The party was believed to have sparked a growing cluster in the Hunter and Upper Hunter regions, which had since been placed into a snap week-long lockdown.
Victoria
Victoria Health confirmed six new community cases on Friday two of which were reported on Thursday. The four new cases were linked to the existing outbreak but werent in isolation for their infectious periods.
These new cases lifted the states outbreak to 75 cases.
There were six Covid cases in hospital, two of these were in ICU on ventilators.
Victoria’s Covid-19 response commander Jeroen Weimar anticipated the list of exposure sites to grow as the day progressed. He urged Victorians to “keep a beady eye” on the list.
We think exposure sites will spread across a wider part of the city and potentially entry regional Victoria.
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Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced the states sixth Covid-19 lockdown on Thursday, which was due to last for seven days.
Lockdown protest
On Thursday night, hundreds of people gathered on Flinders Street in Melbournes CBD an hour before the seven-day lockdown was set to begin.
Maskless attendees were calling for Premier Daniel Andrews resignation and freedom in scenes that were similar to the anti-lockdown protest and brawl that erupted in the streets of Sydney last month.
Police arrested 15 people at the rally two for breaching bail and stating false names, nine for police to establish their identities and issue fines, and four for breaching bail, activating a flare and hindering police.
Capsicum spray was also used by police during the rally.
Sixteen fines were issued for exceeding public gathering limits, not wearing masks, and being outside a 5km bubble from their homes.
North West Metro Assistant Commissioner Luke Cornelius said at a press conference on Friday a police officer outside the Melbourne East Station was pushed over by protesters and allegedly kicked while on the ground. He suffered minor cuts and abrasions but didnt require medical attention.
Kicking a police officer while hes down is a dog act,” Cornelius said.
CCTV and body cam footage were being reviewed, and the police would be releasing images from the protest to ask for the publics help in identifying those in attendance.
[Were] really keen to bring every accountability to bear on these individuals to stop them generating and instigating these protests.
Six new community cases reported on Thursday, believed to be infected with the highly transmissible Delta variant, prompted the Victorian Government to lock down for seven days, initiating the states sixth Covid-19 lockdown.
Queensland
Queensland reported 10 new community cases on Friday five children and five adults all linked to the Indooroopilly Delta cluster and all household contacts of existing cases.
Five of the cases were linked to Ironside State School, three to Indooroopilly State High School, and two to Brisbane Grammar.
Deputy Premier Steven Miles confirmed eight of these cases were in quarantine for their infectious periods, while two were infectious in the community for one day during southeast Queenslands lockdown period.
This is very encouraging news, Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young added. Weve got to keep it up for the next few days, were not there yet.
Lockdown in southeast Queensland would be reviewed this week to determine if restrictions could be lifted on Sunday.
These new cases take the cluster to 89 cases in total.
Restrictions in southeast Queensland were set to be lifted at 4pm (local time) on Sunday, but it was too early to say if that would happen.
