June 23, 2021
Queensland Health has declared six more Council areas in Sydney as COVID-19 hotspots following the rapid spread of the Delta variant.
Confirmed cases in the Sydney area have risen to more than 30, including 13 new cases reported since 8:00pm on Tuesday.
From 1:00am on Thursday (June 24) the Local Government Areas of City of Sydney, Woollahra, Bayside, Canada Bay, Inner West and Randwick will be declared hotspots.
The Waverley LGA has been a hotspot since June 19.
From 1:00am on Thursday, anyone who has been in any of these LGAs will not be allowed to enter Queensland unless they are a returning Queensland resident, except for a limited range of people who can enter for an essential purpose.
Anyone who is allowed to enter Queensland from these locations will be required to go into 14 days mandatory hotel quarantine.
Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said Queensland was continuing to take a cautious approach as positive cases increased in Sydney.
“The recent cases in Sydney are very concerning due to many of these cases being infected by fleeting contact,” she said.
“The number of exposure sites is also rapidly increasing, with more than 120 exposure sites currently listed.
“The Delta variant is much more contagious than other variants and we do not want it circulating in Queensland.”
Queenslanders have been encouraged to reconsider non-essential travel to Greater Sydney and surrounding regions.
“If there is further spread into NSW, we may have to extend border restrictions into more local government areas,” Dr Young said.
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UPDATE: Queensland Health has added all Local Government Areas within Greater Sydney, the NSW Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour to the 1:00am hotspot declaration on Thursday.
Anyone who has been in any of these council areas will not be allowed to enter Queensland unless they are a returning Queensland resident, except for a limited range of people who can enter for an essential purpose. People who can enter Queensland will need to complete 14 days quarantine in government-arranged accommodation.
The hotspot declaration will not be backdated. It will apply to anyone that has been in the hotspot locations on or after 1:00am, June 24.
Queenslanders should not travel to Greater Sydney and surrounding regions at this time.
[UPDATED. Originally published as “Six More Council ‘Hotspots’ In NSW”]
