Aussie state of Victoria not to end lockdown, NSW to tighten restrictions amid worrisome COVID-19

Melbourne: Lockdown in Australian state of Victoria will not end as planned while local COVID-19 cases in another state of New South Wales (NSW) failed to subside, forcing the state to tighten restrictions.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced that the state’s five-day snap lockdown will not end on Tuesday night as planned. The length of the extension will be announced today.

“It would be perhaps a few days of sunshine, and then there’s a very high chance we’d be back in lockdown again. That’s what I’m trying to avoid,” said Mr Andrews.

The announcement came as the state recorded 13 locally acquired cases on Monday, bringing the state’s total number of active cases to 81.

At the same time, daily case numbers in Sydney have been hovering around 100 for the last week, with 98 new cases being recorded in the 24 hours to 8:00 p.m. local time Sunday night, a slight drop from Saturday’s 105 cases and Friday’s 111 cases. Among the new cases, 20 cases were infectious in the community, and the isolation status of seven cases remains under investigation. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the focus is to bring down the number of cases infectious while in the community.

“We know how challenging it is but we wouldn’t have thrown everything at it if we didn’t have a chance of quashing it,” said Ms Berejiklian.

A couple of new restrictions including cessation of all nonurgent maintenance and construction work, cutting down of public transport services, and closure of business deemed not essential already took effect until July 30.