A seven-day lockdown is imposed due to several corona cases in the Australian capital Canberra. It is the first time since the pandemic began that strict measures have been imposed again in the region.
After Melbourne and Sydney, the residents of the Australian capital Canberra must also be locked down for at least seven days. A corona case had previously been confirmed in the city for the first time in a year, the authorities announced on Thursday. It is the first time since the beginning of the pandemic that Canberra and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) are again imposed, the newspaper “The Age” reported. The approximately 400,000 residents are only allowed to leave their homes in exceptional cases.
During Thursday, three more people in Canberra tested positive for Corona, which were related to the first case, according to the region’s health officer, Kerryn Coleman. “This is by far the most serious public health risk the ACT has been exposed to in the past twelve months,” said a statement from the local health department. The rules should go into effect at 5 p.m. local time.
Australia is fighting Delta Wave
The lockdown imposed at the end of June in the state of New South Wales with the metropolis of Sydney was last extended to the end of August. Authorities recorded more than 340 new cases here on Thursday. In Melbourne, the measures were extended by a week on Wednesday.
Australia with its 25 million inhabitants has long been very successful in the fight against the pandemic due to extremely strict rules. Due to the spread of the delta variant, however, the lockdowns are now increasing. So far, only 19 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated. In Sydney, 6,500 new infections and 36 deaths had been recorded since mid-June.
