NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian has said that people outside of the currently locked-down Sydney LGAs should prepare for stay-at-home orders to be extended citywide, as 12 new cases were diagnosed in the 24 hours between 8pm on June 24 and 8pm on June 25. More exposure sites outside of the City of Sydney, Waverly, Randwick and Wollahra have emerged overnight since lockdown orders were issued to those four areas on June 25, which has “raised the level of concern” of the state’s health experts.
Despite NSW’s reputation for having some of the most efficient contact tracing capabilities in the world, the rapid spread of the Delta variant is moving at a speed that is now outpacing the state’s ability to cut the chains of transmission. Of particular concern is a delivery driver from a seafood wholesaler in Marrickville who may have unknowingly spread the virus to venues all over the city.
Despite the government’s concern, current health orders have not been officially extended. However, NSW’s chief medical officer Kerry Chant urged Sydneysiders living outside of the locked-down areas of the city to err on the side of caution by restricting their movements, avoiding visiting elderly relatives, and avoiding regional travel outside of Greater Sydney, adding “We cannot construct health orders for every scenario”. Chant also reaffirmed that the previous health order issued on June 20, stating that people living in the LGAs of Bayside, Botany Bay and the Inner West should not travel beyond Greater Sydney, was still in effect.
When asked about whether it was likely that the lockdown orders would be expanded to encompass all of Greater Sydney, Berejiklian said: “I think people should prepare for the news… the situation is worsening beyond what we would have liked to have seen this morning and the reason for that is that the new exposure sites are outside of those areas of concern we have highlighted.” The state government cabinet is scheduled to have an emergency session this afternoon to discuss plans for tackling the current outbreak.