Parts of Sydney will be on lockdown late Friday amid a growing coronavirus outbreak in Australia’s largest city.
Health officials reported an additional 22 locally transmitted cases and imposed a week-long lockdown in four areas, leaving people only allowed to leave their homes for essential purposes.
The outbreak of the highly contagious Delta variant was first detected last week, 65 people have become infected.
New South Wales State Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian said, “If you live or work in these local government areas, you must stay home unless absolutely necessary.”
She said the lockdown, which should go into effect just before midnight, will have a significant impact on businesses, particularly in the city’s central business district, which has a population of more than five million.
“This is to ensure that this does not last for weeks and we believe that this is an appropriate response to the risk,” said Ms. Berejiklian.
A day earlier, the prime minister had said no further restrictions were needed, even though it was the “scariest time” the state went through during the pandemic.
Ms. Berejiklian herself tested negative for the virus after her Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall tested positive.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard is isolating himself as close contact with a suspected Covid-19 case in the parliament building.
The Sydney parish council areas to be closed are Woollahra, Waverley, Randwick and the City of Sydney.
People can only leave their home for important work or education, shopping and sports.
According to authorities, the cluster was spread by a limousine driver at Sydney Airport. He was not vaccinated, allegedly did not wear a mask and is said to have become infected while transporting a foreign flight crew.
Australian states have closed their borders to travelers either from parts of Sydney or from anywhere in New South Wales.
New Zealand has suspended quarantine-free travel with the state until at least July 6th.
One of the infected traveled to the New Zealand capital Wellington last weekend to visit restaurants, bars and tourist attractions.
That led to some restrictions in Wellington, although no one in town has tested positive so far.
Australia has been relatively successful in containing coronavirus clusters, although the Delta variant, first discovered in India, is proving to be more difficult.
Vaccine adoption in the US has been slower than many other developed countries, with only about a quarter of the population receiving at least one dose.
The pandemic left 910 dead in Australia with a population of 26 million.
The only Covid-19 death since October affected an 80-year-old man who was infected abroad and diagnosed in hotel quarantine.