It has been another day when COVID-19 has dominated the breaking news. Here is a wrap of the day:

• Queensland blocked interstate arrivals for two weeks, to stem the tide of southerners fleeing from lockdowns, with premier Annastacia Palaszczuk declaring the state was being “loved to death.”
• NSW hospitals are under increasing stress with major Sydney western suburb’s hospital Westmead moving to an emergency footing as the state recorded the nation’s highest ever daily case count of 919 local cases. The outbreak now stands at 14,829 cases.
• Victoria’s vaccination booking system was overwhelmed with 1.3 million callers and 50,000 a minute seeking to book online after the State opened Pfizer vaccines for under 40-year-olds.
• Victoria’s cases are trending downwards, with 45 cases reported, down from the seven-day average of 58. Nine further unlinked cases saw authorities hesitant to declare the peak had been reached.
• The Commonwealth government eased eligibility for small business loans enabling any business with a turnover of less than $250 million to access the federal scheme being administered by the banks.
• New Zealand saw its highest case count of the pandemic with 63 cases reported, but officials continuing to stress exponential growth was being contained by strong level four restrictions.
• Canberra’s lockdown is to continue until at least September 2, which will mean three weeks of stay-at-home restrictions for the capital. This came after cases fell sharply, with nine local cases reported. The ACT has a seven-day average of 15 cases.
• The vaccine take up continued to surge with 307,191 doses delivered Tuesday, putting the country mathematically on track to reach the key 80 per cent threshold by 20 November. Much of the rise is coming from NSW which is now vaccinating its citizens at one of the world’s fastest rates.
• Five RAAF flights evacuated 955 people from Kabul after US President Joe Biden indicated the US would honour an agreement to leave Afghanistan by next Tuesday 31 August.
• The AFL has anointed Optus stadium in Perth as the preferred venue for the grand final if crowds cannot attend the MCG because of continued COVID-19 restrictions