Those living or working in four local government areas (LGAs) across Sydney have been told to stay home after another 22 community cases were detected in New South Wales (NSW).
In a press conference, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian issued stay-at-home orders for those in Woolhara, Waverley, Randwick and the City of Sydney.
The new measures, which will be in place for a week, mean there are now only five reasons for people who live or work in those areas to leave home. These are:
- if you can't work from home and you have to work outside of home;
- if you can't get educated at home and you have to get educated outside of home;
- if you exercise outside, although we don't want any more groups than 10;
- if you need to provide care or compassion to a relative; or
- if you need to buy essential goods or services.
"We appreciate what impact this will have significantly on businesses, especially in the CBD and those four council areas we've announced," Berejiklian said.
NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys says those who are caught breaching the lockdown will be fined.
"[Traffic and highway patrols are] well aware of the public health orders to make sure that especially leading into the holiday time that people don't travel when they should not travel," he said.
"It doesn't mean that there will be road blocks... but as police go about their normal duties, they will be stopping cars and they will be asking people to produce licences and where there's a need to take action, police will."
Fines are as high as AU$200 ($214) for failing to wear a mask when required and up to AU$1000 ($1074) for breaching public health orders.
The restrictions currently in place for other parts of NSW have also been extended by another week.
COVID-19 outbreak swells by another 22 cases
The announcement comes after five previously unreported community cases were recorded before Thursday's 8pm deadline and another 17 were detected overnight, for a total of 22 cases.
The 17 cases detected overnight will be included in Saturday's official numbers. Fourteen of them are linked to known cases and three are still under investigation.
There are now 65 cases linked to the Bondi cluster, NSW Health says.
Berejiklian says all the cases are linked to known cases, except that of a nine-year-old student whose infection was announced earlier this week.
It's expected the three cases still under investigation after being detected overnight will be linked to the Bondi cluster, as they are south-eastern Sydney residents.
