Australia Imposes 2-Week Lockdown in Sydney Due to Delta Variant Spread... Outdoor Activities Restricted Except for Essential Purposes

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] Australia is imposing lockdowns on cities one after another due to the spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant.

According to Reuters on the 27th, Sydney, Australia's largest city, entered a two-week lockdown starting today. This lockdown was implemented because the number of confirmed cases of the highly transmissible Delta variant increased to 110 around the famous Bondi Beach area.

Accordingly, Sydney residents are prohibited from going out except for four essential purposes: purchasing daily necessities, exercise, medical care and compassionate care, work, and education for two weeks.

Gladys Berejiklian, Premier of New South Wales (NSW), expressed concern during a briefing on the first day of the lockdown, saying, "Considering the strong infectivity of the Delta variant, the number of confirmed cases is expected to exceed the current level within a few days," and added, "This is the most frightening time since the pandemic began."

In Australia's Northern Territory, after the first confirmed case in months and four local infection cases, a strong two-day lockdown was imposed in the three cities of Darwin, Palmerston, and Litchfield.

Meanwhile, Australia had been relatively successful in quarantine compared to other countries due to rapid border closures and strong social distancing measures after the spread of COVID-19, but recently, small cluster infections including the Delta variant have been occurring frequently.

Currently, Australia's cumulative number of COVID-19 confirmed cases is 30,450, and the cumulative number of deaths is 910.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.