Posted on by Olivia Brown

CORONAVIRUS CASES: A SURGE MAY LEAD US BACK TO THAT DREADFUL LOCKDOWN

There’s been a rise in coronavirus cases in NSW and VIC recently

CORONAVIRUS CASES: A SURGE MAY LEAD US BACK TO THAT DREADFUL LOCKDOWN
Image: Road trip with Raj

A surge in coronavirus cases is pushing those in authority to adopt stricter measures once again to control the spread. While NSW has already announced new restrictions, Victoria could also see Stage 4 of restrictions. Read on for the details.

 

NSW Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, announced new restrictions as many parts of the country are witnessing new coronavirus cases, and NSW itself saw 13 new cases in the last 24 hours. She limited group bookings to 10 people from 20 and has limited the capacity of pubs and hotels to 300.

 

She also announced that venues that can hold over 250 patrons would need a dedicated marshal from opening hours to ensure that COVID-19 safety guidelines are being followed and social distancing norms are respected. Places with less than 250 people capacity will need to deploy a marshal during peak hours. Guest registration will also be mandatory to ensure easy trackability in case a surge in coronavirus cases is associated with a venue in the future. These restrictions would be effective from midnight Thursday.

Another reason for these new restrictions is the Casula’s Crossroads Hotel Outbreak that has grown to 28 people. Three of those new coronavirus cases belong to NSW.

 

Similarly, the surge in coronavirus cases is bothering Victoria’s authorities also. The Chief Health Officer of the State, Brett Sutton, said further restrictions could be considered. He said

“Further restrictions need to be considered. We can’t rule anything out if there aren’t sufficient mechanisms to drive down transmission. We would do the minimum required because we know how much of an imposition it is on businesses, on people’s lives, but if it’s required to reduce transmission then it has to be in play.”

Even Premier Daniel Andrews refused to rule out the possibility of Stage 4 lockdown. He said, “If you don’t want Stage 4, if you don’t want the lockdown to last a moment longer, then please follow the rules.”

 

It is not clear whether the Stage 4 restrictions would look like those adopted by New Zealand or not, but it is likely that if the surge is coronavirus cases isn’t stopped, it will make things very tough for all of us. Here’s what New Zealand’s COVID-19 alert levels looked like:

 

 

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