Extra Australian military personnel may be called in to ensure compliance with lockdown rules in Sydney, the New South Wales state government said on Thursday, as the highly infectious Delta coronavirus variant spreads into regional areas.
The move comes as Australia’s capital, Canberra, 260 km (160 miles) southwest of Sydney, announced a snap one-week lockdown from Thursday evening after reporting its first locally acquired case of COVID-19 in more than a year.
Australia Hard hit
Australia, which had won global praise for its successful coronavirus response in the early stages of the pandemic, is now struggling to contain the highly transmissible Delta variant amid a glacial vaccination rollout.
The nation has recorded more than 37,000 cases of Covid-19 and 941 related deaths to date in a population of 25 million.
The country is reporting record daily coronavirus cases this week with the highly infectious Delta variant continuing to spread through the country’s most populous states of New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland. With about 15 million people in the three states, or 60% of Australia’s population, under a strict lockdown.
Cities Remain Under Lockdown
Australia is battling to get on top of the fast-moving Delta strain that has plunged two of its largest cities – Sydney and Melbourne – into hard lockdowns.
In Sydney, more than five million people are enduring their seventh week under stay-at-home orders, currently scheduled to remain until the end of August.
The state of New South Wales recorded 344 new cases Wednesday, taking the total for an outbreak that began in Sydney in mid-June to more than 6,100 cases. Hundreds of thousands of people outside Sydney — including in Newcastle, Byron Bay and most recently, Dubbo — are in lockdown after cases emerged in recent days.
Vaccination Remains only Hope
Before the emergence of delta variant related Covid-19 infections, Australia had used strict border controls and rigorous testing to eliminate community transmission. Now, Prime Minister Scott Morrison is in a race to ramp up a tardy vaccine rollout in a bid to start reopening international borders next year.
Authorities are pinning their hopes on a fresh vaccination drive, suggesting some restrictions could be eased if enough people get vaccinated in the coming weeks. According to the Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker, just 18% of Australians have received two shots — among the lowest levels in the developed world.
“If we keep the vaccination rate up, we will get to six million jabs by the end of August, which will give us an opportunity to think about what additional freedoms we can give people in September and October,” state premier Gladys Berejiklian said.
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