Suburban pubs and clubs join list of hotels to lock down new arrivals for 14 days
Pubs and clubs throughout Sydney will become “medi-sites” to thousands of international arrivals today as tough new quarantine restrictions come into effect to try to stymie the spread of coronavirus.
NSW Coronavirus News
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Pubs and clubs across Sydney’s suburbs will become “medi-sites” to thousands of international arrivals today as tough new quarantine restrictions come into effect in a bid to stop soaring coronavirus transmissions.
The NSW Australian Hotels Association has offered more than 12,000 rooms to statewide effort to find isolation premises for potentially infected travellers, including at clubs such as Penrith Panthers.
The state government hopes the move to involve registered clubs will allow for jobs to be maintained at many of the venues which have been closed as part of measures to contain the spread of the virus.
Tourism Accommodation Australia chief executive officer Michael Johnson confirmed more than 70 per cent of hotels across Sydney had offered their properties for use as a medi-site.
“This is all about providing guests with a suitable, comfortable and relaxed environment while also supporting the creation of ongoing employment and cash flow to businesses,” he said.
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Confirmed COVID-19 cases in NSW rose by 212 yesterday to a total of 1617, with 22 patients being treated in an intensive care unit. Eleven of those are on ventilators.
The state also recorded another death with a woman in her 90s who had been a resident at the Dorothy Henderson Lodge succumbing to the disease in hospital.
The new cases included two children, a childcare worker and a teacher from Ashcroft High School.
One of the children, aged two, had attended a childcare centre where the worker was also confirmed as a new case.
The other child, aged three, was a household contact of an overseas case.
Another two confirmed cases were from a group of 100 Chilean navy personnel who have been self-isolating in hotels in Sydney, and a fourth resident at the Opal Bankstown residential aged care facility.
It is anticipated around 3000 travellers will be descending on Sydney Airport every day and taken to accommodation throughout the greater metropolitan region for a 14-day quarantine period.
However Premier Gladys Berejiklian said while many cases were being imported, there were still a concerning number of community transmissions in a trend that would lead to tougher lockdowns.
“If we see those numbers of community-to-community transmission go up at a rate with which we’re not comfortable with, we will have to put in stricter measures,” she said.
“We’d rather hold off before we have to do that, but if we have to do that we will.”
“There is still a proportion of the community who aren’t doing the right thing and that’s heartbreaking. We don’t want to have to make further decisions based on the irresponsible actions of a minority, but it only takes a handful of people to do the wrong thing and have this thing spread.”
Ms Berejiklian flagged councils being given a greater role in enforcing social distancing, with CrimeStoppers currently receiving about 120 calls a day on potential breaches.
Health bureaucrats have been working around the clock to implement strategies to contain the spread of the virus, with NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant yesterday fronting a media conference after not sleeping for 38 hours, according to a government source.
Police Minister David Elliott warned police would be stepping up patrols around the state after crowds again descended on Burwood Shopping Centre and parks across Sydney.
“Tomorrow morning, people will be waking up to a whole new regime,” he said.
“Whenever an order is given by police or a soldier, they will need to comply.
“In the last 72 hours, police have been spat on and abused and I’ve just had a gutful.”
To help protect jobs, it can be revealed the NSW Treasury has issued a directive to all state government agencies to put forward shovel and screwdriver-ready projects that could be brought forward to start within the next six months.