- No new COVID-19 cases have been recorded in NSW, but authorities are concerned there could be more cases in the community
- Health experts are still trying to determine how a man in his 50s, who lives in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, contracted COVID-19 earlier this week
- Genome sequencing has linked the man’s strain of the virus to a returned U.S. traveller who was quarantined in Sydney
- But experts are still trying to determine the ‘missing link’ between the U.S. traveller and Sydney man
- Following two cases of COVID-19 being recorded in the community, the NSW Premier introduced mandatory mask rules for indoor public venues
No new COVID-19 cases have been recorded in NSW, but authorities are concerned there could be more cases in the community.
Health experts in the state are still trying to determine how a man in his 50s, who lives in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, contracted COVID-19 last week.
He tested positive for the virus on Wednesday, while his wife has since contracted COVID-19 as well.
Genome sequencing has linked the man’s strain of the virus to a returned U.S. traveller who was quarantining in a Sydney hotel.
However, since the two cases never came into contact, NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant explained there’s a ‘missing link’.
“We are currently reviewing CCTV footage to look at how the transmission occurred. What we’re concerned about is that there is a missing link,” she explained in a press conference on Thursday.
“As you can imagine, there are strict procedures around the person being admitted to the quarantine facility and then transferred to our health quarantine facility,” she said.
“We can’t find any direct link between our case, so what we’re concerned about is whether there is another person that infected our case, and then the hypothesis is that our case passed it on to the household,” she added.
Following the two cases of COVID-19 being recorded in the community, the NSW Premier yesterday introduced mandatory mask rules for indoor public venues.
Additionally, those living in the Greater Sydney, the Illawarra and Central Coast regions are being asked to limit the amount of visitors to their home.
New Zealand authorities have also temporarily suspended flights from Sydney, while other Australian states and territories have enacted border restrictions.