New restrictions in Sydney as Covid outbreak grows
Australia's most populous state has announced new restrictions for the Greater Sydney area so that they can include a growing outbreak of Covid-19.
Household gatherings will be capped at 10 persons and hospitality venues at 300 until Wednesday. Residents had recently been told to stay at home.
The cases were found in the city's Northern Beaches area, which entered a five-day lockdown on Saturday.
Since that time Sydney residents have rushed to leave metropolis ahead of Christmas.
Thousands have travelled from the town in New South Wales (NSW) to the neighboring state of Victoria.
In response, Victoria announced that its borders would be closed to residents of Greater Sydney and the NSW Central Coast from midnight.
The outbreak has also forced organizers of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race to cancel the function for the first time in its history.
The restrictions in Greater Sydney - like the Central Coast and Blue Mountains - could be lifted if no cases of community transmission are reported. Other measures include:
- The rule of 1 person per 4 sq m (43 sq ft) will return for all indoor settings including hospitality venues and places of worship
- A cap of 300 persons will be introduced in those places
- Singing and chanting at indoor venues will not be allowed
- Dance floors will never be permitted, apart from weddings when up to 20 persons from the bridal party will be allowed
- Speaking at a news conference, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian urged persons in the Sydney area to wear face masks in public although it was not mandatory. Earlier she pleaded with all residents to limit their activities over the next couple of days and stay at home "unless you need to" go out.
The brand new cluster emerged just days before the Christmas period, prompting concern that travel restrictions may impact festive plans.
Until Wednesday, Australia had recorded just one single locally transmitted infection during the past fortnight. The united states, which is considered a relative success story of the pandemic, has recorded about 28,000 infections and 908 deaths in total, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally.
