Australia news LIVE NSW records 1431 new local COVID-19 cases 12 deaths Victoria records 208 new cases

Key postsHide key posts

Latest

1 of 3

Oldest

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian, Deputy Premier John Barilaro and Deputy Chief Health Officer Dr Marianne Gale are due to provide a coronavirus update from 11am AEST.

Watch live below.

Victorian Premier Dan Andrews and COVID-19 response commander Jeroen Weimar are due to provide a coronavirus update from 11.45am AEST.

Watch live below. And stay tuned from an address from the Prime Minister at midday.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has been asked about long delays experienced by some confirmed cases in receiving phone calls from health authorities, after NSW Health moved to make a text message their first form of communication with people who return a positive test.

The Premier said, while contact tracers were “doing incredibly well given the circumstances”, the future of management of the Delta strain once vaccination rates are higher would depend on a level of “self-monitoring”, although people needed to be proactive now.

Dr Marianna Gale says a Sydney woman in her 30s has died with COVID-19. Credit:Kate Geraghty

“Without giving away anybody’s private circumstances, some people who are very sick aren’t getting a test until right at the last minute,” the Premier said, adding “the job of our contact tracers is made easier if people get tested as soon as they think they may have been exposed”.

Earlier in the press conference, NSW Deputy Chief Health Officer Marianne Gale announced a Sydney woman in her 30s had died with COVID-19 on Wednesday after testing positive on Tuesday.

The Premier said part of the state’s plan over the next “couple of weeks” would be to share the COVID-19 caseload better among hospitals.

“I will have more to say about this next week, but I am keen to have the clinicians themselves and our experts themselves explain this rather than coming from a politician, to give everybody the degree of comfort I have,” she said.

Ms Berejiklian thanked health workers in the state for continuing to provide high standards of care under tough conditions.

As NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced earlier, the state will be publishing details of its hospital surge and ICU capacity online next week.

At this morning’s coronavirus update, the Premier said all available modelling indicated September and October would be the most challenging months for the state’s hospital system.

“I want to make very clear that every day there are models that are presented from within the experts we have in NSW, but also externally from non-government organisations,” Ms Berejiklian said.

“And nobody is going to get the exact figure right, no one is going to get the exact day right, but I have been very open with the information I have.”

The Premier said it was on the public record that “at any given time, you have been 500 and 600 ICU beds”.

“We don’t intend to use every single bed that is available in our plan, let me make that clear,” the Premier said.

Ms Berejiklian added it was likely “different procedures” would be in place during this time, such as people being taken to hospitals which may not be the closest to their home.

“Just because you hear about something being done differently, I don’t want people to be concerned by that because that is what is in our pandemic plan,” she said.

“That is what we have planned and prepared for.”

New Zealand has reported 28 new, locally acquired cases of COVID-19.

There were 49 new cases of coronavirus announced yesterday.

The outbreak, sparked this month by a returnee from New South Wales, triggered a nationwide lockdown.

This week, PM Jacinda Ardern lowered the lockdown level for all areas outside of Auckland.

Auckland, where most of the outbreak has occurred, remains at the highest level.

NSW Deputy Chief Health Officer Marianne Gale says health authorities remain concerned by ongoing sewage detections in parts of regional NSW which have not recorded any cases.

Dr Gale asked people in Jindabyne, Cooma and Bega, in southern NSW, Bomaderry in the Illawarra-Shoalhaven region, Wauchope on the mid north coast and Blayney in western NSW to be particularly alert to symptoms given the positive detections.

NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro has urged regional communities to get tested for COVID-19. Credit:Kate Geraghty

There were 60 new cases in the state’s west and far west in the 24 hours to 8pm last night, including 11 new cases reported in Bourke.

“For the community in Bourke, this is the highest rate [of cases] in any reporting period, so we are calling on the community to come out and get tested,” NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro said.

Cases are also rising in the Hunter New England areas (11 cases overnight) and the Illawarra (with 13 new cases).

Mr Barilaro praised the community of Parkes which increased its first dose vaccination coverage from 36 per cent to more than 66 per cent over the past week.

NSW has reported 1431 new local coronavirus cases on Friday and 12 deaths which have been attributed to the virus.

It is the highest number of cases and deaths recorded in the state within a 24-hour period.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian arriving for Friday’s coronavirus update. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

The deaths included people aged in their 30s to their 90s. They were:

A woman in her 30s from south-west Sydney who died at home on Wednesday. Investigations are underway into the source of her infection. NSW Deputy Chief Health Officer Marianne Gale said she had tested positive on Tuesday and was not vaccinated;

A man in his 70s from south-east Sydney who died at St George Hospital. He was a resident of St George Aged Care Facility in Bexley and acquired his infection there. He is the first death linked to this aged care facility;

A woman in her 70s from south-west Sydney who died at Westmead hospital, where she acquired her infection;

A woman in her 80s from south-west Sydney who died at Westmead Hospital;

A man in his 80s from south-west Sydney who died at Liverpool Hospital;

A man in his 70s from south-west Sydney who died at Concord Hospital;

A woman in her 70s from south-west Sydney who died at Liverpool Hospital;

A woman in her 70s from south-west Sydney who died at Liverpool Hospital;

A man in his 70s from Sydney’s north who died at Hornsby Hospital;

A woman in her 60s from south-west Sydney who died at Liverpool hospital;

A man in his 70s from south-west Sydney who died at St George Hospital; and

A man in his 90s from the Blue Mountains who died at the Hawkesbury Living Aged Care Facility.

“As I have said previously, the best health advice I have is that we anticipate a peak in cases in the next fortnight,” Premier Gladys Berejiklian said.

“The next fortnight is likely to be our worst in terms of the number of cases, but as I have said it is not the number of cases we need to be focusing on but how many of those cases end up in our intensive care wards and hospitals and how many people we have vaccinated.”

There are currently 979 COVID-19 cases admitted to hospital in NSW, including 160 people in intensive care. Sixty-three of whom require ventilation.

Earlier this morning, we told you that damaging winds and flooding has ravaged the east coast of the United States.

We now know that the death toll has climbed to at least 43 people. Of those, 12 died in New York City (one in a car and 11 in flooded basement apartments).

Cars and trucks stranded in high water on the Major Deegan Expressway in the Brox. Credit:AP

US President Joe Biden says federal first responders are now helping with the clean-up operation.

Read the latest coverage courtesy of our world desk here.

Queensland has recorded no new cases of coronavirus, as Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says she “stands by” her comments about COVID-19 vaccines and children.

During Friday’s coronavirus update, Ms Palaszczuk confirmed the Gold Coast family who recently travelled to and from Victoria have since tested negative to COVID-19. She added that more than 51 per cent of eligible Queenslanders have now had their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

Queensland Premier Annastacia is standing by her comments about COVID-19 and children.Credit:Matt Dennien

As for her comments earlier this week regarding the research around how COVID-19 affects children, the Premier said she “stand[s] by what I believe in”. Ms Palaszczuk had suggested that Queensland would stick to tough restrictions because children under 12 didn’t yet have an opportunity to be vaccinated (despite no vaccine being rolled out to under-12s anywhere in the world).

“I’m asking very simple questions here of Scott Morrison and from the national cabinet,” the Premier said.

“It’s not about being against our national plan ... Queensland is doing everything that is part of that national plan.

“Let’s have an educated conversation about these issues. Rather than attacks, let’s have a conversation.”

Ms Palaszczuk said that from Monday, Queensland would be able to offer 680 rooms in hotel quarantine after recently shutting its border to those returning or relocating from NSW, Victoria and the ACT.

“That’s because we’ve had the opportunity for the week to ease the pressure,” she said.

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young added that the risk from two truck drivers who recently spent time in Queensland after testing positive to coronavirus was “low”.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and her team have just finished providing a coronavirus update.

There were no new cases of COVID-19 recorded in the Sunshine State today.

We’ll have the playback version with you as soon as possible.

Latest

1 of 3

Oldest

Share this post