Victoria's lockdown will be extended beyond Tuesday night, but there is no end in sight. Photo / Getty Images
Victoria's lockdown will be extended beyond Tuesday night, but there is no end in sight. Photo / Getty Images
Australia's coronavirus crisis intensified today, with NSW announcing a fifth Covid death, South Australia responding to two community cases with new restrictions and Victoria extending its lockdown.
South Australia will introduce new restrictions from midnight tonight after the state recorded two new locally acquired Covid-19 cases.
Two people from the same family, who recently flew into Australia, have tested positive. An 81-year-old man was diagnosed earlier today and his daughter has now tested positive too. Five other family members have so far tested negative.
"These will be statewide restrictions that have been put in place ... and we will review those on Friday this week," said South Australian Premier Steven Marshall.
"We've only got one chance to get this right. We are very concerned about the situation. We are assuming it is the Delta variant."
Non-essential retail in SA will close until Friday. The one person per four square metre rule will come back, and dining at restaurants will be outdoor only.
In addition, only 10 people will be allowed in homes and masks will be needed in "high-risk" settings such as public transport.
Schools will remain open and people can still go to work but are being encouraged to work from home.
"Our focus is to minimise effects on businesses and have smallest disruption that we can," Marshall said.
"It will be a disaster if we have to go into long-term lockdown."
Victoria's lockdown extended
Meanwhile, Victoria's fifth lockdown has been extended as the state grapples with a super-spreading Delta outbreak.
Premier Daniel Andrews said the lockdown would be extended beyond Tuesday at midnight.
Victoria's lockdown will be extended beyond Tuesday night, but there is no end in sight. Photo / Getty Images
"[Ending the lockdown] would not be the right thing to do. It would be, perhaps, a few days of sunshine, and then a very high chance we would be back in lockdown again, that is what I'm trying to avoid, we are trying to do this properly and bring the cases to an end," he said.
"This thing is moving so fast, it is so challenging and dynamic that we have to do be on our guard and make sure we make the best calls because you only get one chance to do that."
Victoria recorded 12 locally transmitted cases of Covid-19 this morning. There were 16 new cases on Sunday, 19 on Saturday and 10 on Friday.
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Today, he said he's seen some more recent images – almost certainly a 15-second video posted by a Channel 7 journo of some people exercising in Bondi on Sunday.
The WA Premier pondered whether walking was a "sensible" thing to do.
"I've seen some of the images online, in particular, of Sydney – big crowds of people wandering around without masks, celebrating and partying and garden outdoor gyms, all that sort of stuff, it seems bizarre to me."
Masks are not mandatory outdoors in NSW as the risk of transmission is low unless an area is crowded.
"It's not too much to ask people to follow the rules, and if the rules allow for people to go and do that well then the rules should be charged," McGowan said.
"We crushed it, it came from Sydney to here, and over the course of two weeks we've got rid of it.
