ACT records 18 new local Covid-19 cases, person in 20s in ICU

A young person, aged only in their 20s, has been taken to intensive care in Canberra and is relying on a ventilator.

A Canberra resident in their 20s with Covid-19 is in intensive care in Canberra and breathing through a ventilator.

Canberra recorded 18 new cases of Covid-19 on Friday, bringing the national capital’s total outbreak to 315.

Of the 18 new cases, three were in isolation for their entire infectious period, while 15 were contagious out in the community.

Thirteen of the new infections are linked to existing cases, while five remain under investigation.

It was announced that 10 Canberrans were in hospital with Covid-19, with three of these in the intensive care unit.

ACT chief health officer Kerryn Coleman said that included a young person who needed ventilation. She did not say if they had any underlying health conditions.

“I can advise that today we have one patient in their 20s requiring ventilation,” she said.

The ACT’s outbreak is disproportionately affecting the territory’s younger population, with around 84 per cent of cases occurring in those under the age of 44.

Canberra’s outbreak has grown again. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Canberra’s lockdown was originally set to end on Thursday evening but has been extended until September 17 as the capital struggles to bring its case numbers down to zero.

Chief Minister Andrew Barr announced that the additional Pfizer vaccines arriving in the ACT from Australia’s dose deal with Singapore would be given to Canberra’s year 12 student over the next two weeks.