Covid NSW: Southwest Sydney residents told to stay home amid lockdown

Sydney’s surge in Covid cases has shifted from the eastern suburbs to the city’s south west. See the full list of suburbs facing tighter restrictions.

Sydney’s southwest has been declared the new hotspot for the state’s second wave of Covid-19 as authorities warned cases had shifted from the eastern suburbs.

There were 27 new cases of Covid-19, with only 13 of those in isolation prior to testing positive and 18 of the total new cases are linked to existing cases.

Three council areas – Fairfield, Canterbury-Bankstown and Liverpool – have been put on alert as Premier Gladys Berejiklian confirmed that tougher restrictions for the area were a very real possibility.

“We’ve seen the main cases move from the southeast … we have seen overnight some concerning statistics on what is happening in the Fairfield, Canterbury-Bankstown and Liverpool council areas,” she said.

“Can I please say to the communities in that area, many of them have a similar background to me, please don’t mingle with family … don’t think it’s okay to go visit your cousins.”

The three LGAs are all known for their multicultural demographics, with lower rates of Australian-born residents when compared to the NSW average.

Health workers collect patient information at the Fairfield Showground Sypath Drive-through Clinic in Sydney. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Bianca De Marchi

Chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant said the onus of preventing further transmission now rested with the people of southwest Sydney.

“It’s really a crunch time for the community where the destiny is in your hands,” she said.

She added that a significant portion of the transmission in southwest Sydney was among household contacts and between different household groups.

“The concern we’ve got though, which is reflected in the numbers of the people that are infectious in the community, is the fact that by the time we get to those household cases, the rest of the household is already infected,” she said.

The warnings marked a strong shift in directives from the government, with both the Premier and Dr Chant now discouraging people from visiting family for care and compassion reasons.

“Please do not leave the house. I’m pretty certain that most of us have stocked up on groceries for the next month or so. We probably (have) all got more things than we need,” Ms Berejiklian said despite assuring residents at the start of the pandemic that shops would always remain open.

Police Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys also confirmed police will be ramping up their efforts, with a particular focus on the three southwestern LGAs.

Labor MP Jihad Dib and prominent Lebanese-Australian Dr Jamal Rifi have both used their platforms to raise awareness in the community.

Dr Rifi said many people in southwest Sydney were unable to work from home and many others relied on daily family visits from relatives for basic care.

“I can tell you when we had the northern beaches cluster, I tested so many tradies who lived in Canterbury-Bankstown and worked in the Northern Beaches. They need to go to their job and we don’t want to stop them,” he said.

“We have a lot of elderly people who live at home but they need their daughters or their sons to come visit them on a daily basis to look after and care for them. They don’t go to nursing homes. But we are telling them that only one person should visit mum and dad or only one person should go to the shops.

Dr Jamal Rifi. Picture: Tim Hunter

Member for Lakemba Jihad Dib. Picture: AAP Image/Joel Carrett

“We are mobilising everything we can without anyone calling on us. It is the duty of everyone to do their best.”

Mr Dib said he has been spreading the word about new restrictions through his social media platforms but said it was important not to blame the region for the Covid crisis.

“Somebody rang me up and said why we are being treated this way … this potentially says that if this goes to shit, it’s your fault. And that is unfair. People will see it that way,“ he said.

“(The government message is) it’s in your hands. It’s very subtle but in times where people are feeling heightened emotions, and these subtle things are so important.

“I don‘t think that was the (government’s) intention but the community is trying to work together to make this happen.”

Canterbury MP Sophie Cotsis said the Premier needs to communicate clearly to everyone, regardless of their postcode or background.

“The Premier needs to clearly communicate to everyone across Sydney, no matter their background, that they need to follow the health advice,” she said.

As of May 2020, there were more than 70,000 casual workers in Sydney’s inner southwest, making up about 26 per cent of the workforce.

Ms Cotsis said greater financial support was also needed for casual and essential workers.