By Renju Jose
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s most populous state, New South Wales (NSW), reported on Monday no cases of local coronavirus for the first time in nearly three weeks, while Sydney faced several outbreaks and authorities asked dozens of thousands of people to take the test.
NSW’s number of daily tests has dropped to about 20,000 in the past two days, from a peak of around 70,000 recorded on Christmas Day, 25 December. The overwhelming majority of tests are in the state capital, Sydney.
“The numbers are very low … if we are going to succeed in staying ahead of the COVID pandemic, testing is crucial in large numbers so that we can be sure of the data when we are making decisions,” NSW Acting Premier John Barilaro told reporters .
Authorities imposed mandatory masks on indoor spaces and on public transport as of Monday for Sydney’s five million residents or would face a fine of A $ 200 ($ 154).
NSW officials have rejected requests for mandatory face masks since the pandemic began and the policy change follows the latest outbreak of Sydney, which appears to be highly infectious, and before a cricket test match between Australia and India in the scheduled city to start on January 7
The Australian Cricket Board on Monday further reduced the crowd capacity for the test to 25%, about 10,000 spectators, from 50%, amid criticism from health officials, the event would become a virus oversizer.
Australia and India are in the middle of a series of four tests, being contested with strict health measures, with both sides traveling to Sydney for the third test on Thursday.
Two cases linked to the new Sydney cluster around a liquor store were reported after the daily deadline of 2,000 local time. These will be added to the count for Tuesday.
Low single-digit cases of a cluster in the northern coast suburbs in recent days suggest that a rigid block since mid-December may have eliminated the virus, but a KPMG report said the blockage cost NSW’s economy A $ 3.20 billion ($ 2.46 billion) in December.
NSW and Sydney, Australia’s largest city, have been isolated from the rest of Australia by closing the state border or mandatory 14-day quarantine rules for interstate arrivals from NSW.
The neighboring state of Victoria, which is also battling new cases in the state capital, Melbourne, reported three local cases on Monday, bringing the state’s active cases to 36.
Australia has largely avoided the high number of cases and deaths from the new coronavirus compared to other developed countries, but the latest groupings of COVID-19 in Sydney have raised fears of a wider outbreak.
He reported almost 28,500 cases of COVID-19 and 909 deaths since the pandemic began. (Graphic: https://tmsnrt.rs/34pvUyi)
($ 1 = 1.2982 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Renju Jose; Editing by Michael Perry)