New cases spark restrictions
Household gatherings will be restricted to 20 people and masks made compulsory in indoor areas across Greater Sydney, as health authorities work to trace one new local Covid-19 infection.
NSW reported two new coronavirus cases yesterday, after the wife of a man from Sydney’s eastern suburbs who tested positive on Wednesday morning was also found to have the virus.
The man, aged in his 50s, had not recently returned from overseas, did not work in quarantine and had no contacts with the hospital system, prompting urgent genomic testing to determine any genetic links to cases in the quarantine system or in other states.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced new restrictions for Sydney, the Central Coast and
Blue Mountains enforceable from 5pm local time yesterday until 12.01am on Monday, in light of the community transmission, which brought an end to a month
without local cases.
Household gatherings will be limited to 20 people, including children, masks will be compulsory on public transport and in public indoor areas, singing in indoor venues will not be allowed, dancing and drinking in venues will not be allowed (with a recommendation for wedding dance floors to be restricted to 20 people), and visitors at aged care facilities will be restricted to two.
‘‘We believe this is a proportionate response to the risk ahead of us,’’ the premier said, thanking the couple who have tested positive for using QR codes in their movements across Sydney. NSW Health issued new venues of concern related to the new case, including some in Sydney’s north, as investigations continued. Locations include a Woolworths and Chemist Warehouse in Double Bay and The Royal Sydney Golf Club in Rose Bay.
The venues alerts have sent hundreds of Sydneysiders into self-isolation, including NSW
Treasurer Dominic Perrottet who will self-isolate at his home until next Friday after he learned he had visited the same central city cafe as the man on April 30.
Perrottet, who has returned a negative Covid-19 test, began isolating on Wednesday evening.
He had earlier been at Parliament House for question time on Wednesday.
The Sydney Swans’ AFL coaching staff and players from the Sydney Roosters NRL club have also been sent for testing after the man attended a Moore Park cafe they frequent following a trip to the SCG’s stadium club gym on Monday morning.
On Wednesday night, NSW Health revealed fragments of the virus had been detected in an inner west sewerage network, hours after it revealed the eastern suburbs man returned a positive result.