Australia's Covid outbreak grows despite the lockdown in Syndey

July 13, 2021: -On Monday, Australia reported its most significant daily rise in Covid-19 cases this year, fueled by a fast-growing outbreak of the delta variant in Sydney despite the biggest city entering its third week of lockdown in the country.

New South Wales state reports 112 new locally transmitted coronavirus cases, mostly from Sydney, which marks the fifth consecutive day of record case numbers.

It had a glimmer of light as the number of newly-infected people out in the community while infectious decreased to 34, down from 45 by Sunday.

State Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the progress of that figure in the future would determine if Sydney’s lockdown would be extended or not.

“That’s the number we need to get as close to zero as possible, and It is really up to us. The health expert advises on the basis of what those numbers look like. I can’t be clearer than that,” Berejiklian said.

The majority of Monday’s cases were family members or close friends of already infected persons, he added.

The Sydney lockdown measures, home to a fifth of Australia’s 25 million population, were toughened over the weekend, restricting residents to within 10 km of home for exercise. Outdoor gatherings have been limited to two people, and only one person from the house can leave the house each day to buy essentials.

Australia has successfully suppressed sporadic flare-ups of infections through snap lockdowns, speedy contact tracing, and strict social distancing rules. A total of almost 31,200 cases and 911 deaths after the pandemic started has fared better than many other developed economies.

However, the highly virulent delta strain and a sluggish vaccine rollout have stoked concerns of a huge outbreak. Only 11% of Australia’s adult population of just above 20.5 million have been fully vaccinated so far.