- NSW continues to break daily case number records, with 291 new cases of COVID-19 recorded in the past 24 hours
- Premier Gladys Berejiklian says given the number of infectious she expects that number to creep higher in the coming days
- Victoria announced another six cases on Friday, as residents across the state wake up to their sixth lockdown
- Victoria’s Health Minister acknowledged the repeated lockdowns affect on residents’ mental health, announcing additional support
- The Federal and Victorian governments are also offering $400 million in relief funding for small businesses
NSW continues to break daily case number records, with 291 new cases of COVID-19 recorded in the past 24 hours.
That’s the highest number of cases recorded in a single day since this latest outbreak in Sydney began in Mid-June.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian said considering the amount of people who were infectious while out in the community, that number was likely to rise.
“I do want to foreshadow that, given this high number of cases, we’re likely to see this trend continue for the next few days,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“I expect higher case numbers in the next few days and I want people to be prepared for that.”
A woman in her 60s was the latest person to die after contracting COVID-19 in NSW, with 22 deaths now linked to the outbreak.
In Victoria, another six new cases of COVID-19 were announced on Friday, including two cases which were announced yesterday.
Residents across the state woke up to day one of their sixth consecutive lockdown, with the latest restrictions set to end in a week.
Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley acknowledged the continuous lockdowns were testing some residents’ mental health.
Mr Foley said additional phone support services would be made available to those struggling, while income support was available for affected businesses.
The State Government and Commonwealth will offer $400 million worth of relief funding to small business owners who’ve been impacted by the latest lockdown.
Payments of $2800 will be sent to up to 95,000 businesses including gyms, cafes and other small businesses.
Across the country, WA, Tasmania and the ACT all recorded zero new cases of COVID-19, while Queensland notched up 10 new infections.