From 5pm on August 5, Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Port Stephens, Cessnock, Dungog, Singleton and Muswellbrook in the Hunter and Lower Hunter will go into lockdown until Thursday, August 12, after locally acquired cases were diagnosed in the area. These LAGs will be under the same lockdown settings as the rest of Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast and Wollongong. Virus fragments have also been detected in waste water from Armidale and Dubbo, which could be an early sign that the Delta outbreak has reached even further into NSW.
NSW’s Delta outbreak continues to worsen. On August 5, the state recorded 262 cases of community transmission, 45 of which were infectious in the community, and five deaths. Vaccination remains the frontline strategy for bringing the growing health crisis under control. The federal government has redirected an additional 180,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine, which will be distributed in the eight hotspot LGAs in Sydney's west and southwest, prioritising year 12 students preparing for their HSC exams. A greater urgency for young people aged 16 and over to get vaccinated has emerged in recent days, as people in their teens, 20s and 30s are currently being treated in intensive care. A 27-year-old man with Covid-19 died suddenly on August 3. No one who has died or been hospitalised has been fully vaccinated.
The premier said that incentives for vaccinated people were being considered, including allowing people who have had their jabs to return to work. "It's the way for us to get back everything we're craving," Gladys Berejiklian said.