Covid update: Locals encouraged to dob in lockdown travellers

NEW South Wales has recorded 97 new Covid cases over the last 24 hours, with 29 cases infectious in the community for two or more days.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Dr Kerry Chant said the number of infectious people within the community is “incredibly concerning.” 

“Unfortunately, 29 of those we understand were infectious for all of the time they were infectious in the community,” Premier Berejiklian said.

“That number of people being infectious in the community keeps going up,” she said.

A majority of the 97 new cases are household contacts from the Greater Sydney area, however there has been a rise in unlinked cases, with 34 cases now under investigation.

Eighteen people are currently in intensive care and five of those patients require ventilation. 

New South Wales Deputy Police Commissioner, Gary Worboys, warned those travelling outside of the Greater Sydney area.

“We have spoken a lot about people moving outside Greater Sydney and trying to disguise that in some sort of business trip when it is really a holiday, trying to provide police with excuses as to why they have been found outside Greater Sydney and have a caravan they are towing or camping gear with them,” Deputy Commissioner Worboys said.

“Every single day, senior police from the northern regions, southern region and western region meet and discuss tactics that police will use, the taskings they will use, they review the last 24 hours,” he said.

Mr Worboys said police will ensure they are visible at regional airports, meet buses and trains travelling out of Sydney and monitor major roads out of the Greater Sydney area.

“If people want to travel outside of the Greater Sydney area, they will be stopped by police,” he said.

“If they’re not stopped by police, the local communities will dob them in and we encourage that,” said Deputy Commissioner Worboys.