Seventeen new cases of COVID-19 recorded in NSW

Another 17 cases of COVID-19 have been diagnosed in New South Wales overnight, including one mystery case.

Another 17 new cases of COVID-19 have been diagnosed in New South Wales overnight, including one mystery case, Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced on Monday.

Of those, eight are returned travellers in hotel quarantine and the other nine are local transmissions including eight linked to known clusters.

However the Premier confirmed there was one new case being investigated.

“We are holding the line and doing OK, but are still on high alert,” she said.

“But we cannot let our guard down. That’s how the virus will take hold and spread.”

She said it was imperative NSW remained vigilant so people could continue to have this level of freedom and to keep the economy running.

NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant said three of the new cases were linked to the Thai Rock restaurant in Wetherill Park and four were linked to a funeral cluster – including one child, which prompted the closure of Georges River Grammar School in Sydney’s southwest.

The Thai Rock restaurant at Potts Point in Sydney has been closed for deep cleaning.

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A couple who tested positive following a funeral gathering in Bankstown attended two restaurants while infectious.

Dr Chant said anyone who attended Tan Viet Noodle House Cabramatta (Crispy Chicken Noodle House) between 1pm and 2pm on July 22 or An Restaurant in Bankstown between 9am and 11am on July 23 is asked to keep an eye on their symptoms.

Two cases are under investigation including a patron who dined at the Thai Rock restaurant in Potts Point. The mystery case is a man in his 40s from southwestern Sydney with no known links to clusters.

This means there are now two cases linked to the Thai Rock restaurant in Potts Point.

On Sunday NSW Health issued a warning to patrons who attended the Potts Point restaurant for two hours or more between July 15 and July 25 to immediately be tested for COVID-19 and self-isolate for 14 days regardless of symptoms.

“Anyone who attended Thai Rock Potts Point for less than two hours on these dates should monitor for symptoms and immediately isolate and seek testing if they appear,” the health department said.

Five NSW residents are in intensive care.

“It doesn’t take much for a cluster to grow,” Ms Berejiklian said.

Sydneysiders are urged to avoid activities where social distancing is not possible. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Jeremy Piper

“Think about what we do each day: We might go to the shop, to work, or to drop our kids to sport events.

“If you multiply that by tens or hundreds of thousands you can see how quickly it can spread.”

There are now 70 cases associated with the Thai Rock at Wetherill Park, including 11 associated with Our Lady of Lebanon Church.

Another 56 cases are linked to the Crossroads Hotel cluster, and eight cases are associated with the Batemans Bay Soldiers Club.

Nine cases are now linked to funerals in western Sydney.

Ms Berejiklian also urged Sydneysiders not to attend a Black Lives Matter protest that was scheduled to take place in Sydney on Tuesday but has been blocked by the Supreme Court.

Earlier on Monday Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk declared she would “slam the border shut” on NSW if the number of community-acquired cases of COVID-19 continues to grow.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says people should remain vigilant in order to preserve their freedom keep the economy running. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Jeremy Piper

Ms Palaszczuk said health officials were monitoring the situation in NSW.

“If there are outbreaks of community transmission where it cannot be sourced, or there are clusters, we will not hesitate to declare hot spots, or we will not hesitate if it gets out of control to slam the border shut,” she said.

The Queensland Premier also took another swipe at Ms Berejiklian over her refusal to move the border south in a bid to ease traffic for communities in the area.

“If the NSW Premier had come up and had a look she would’ve seen the practical sense of what we were suggesting,” she said.

“We were trying to ease the situation, but unfortunately they have rejected that.”