Fitzsimmons Appointed to New Role in Pandemic

SHANE Fitzsimmons has stepped down as Commissioner of the Rural Fire Service and taken on the role of Commissioner for NSW Resilience, a new agency to prepare, respond and recover from disaster, effective in one month and will be Deputy Secretary for Emergency Management.

Covid-19 Statistics in NSW:

• 2,637 cases confirmed in NSW.
• 57 cases reported yesterday.
• Another 2 deaths in last 24 hours – both men, both from community transmissions.
• Total of 18 deaths in New South Wales.
• 1,600 overseas acquired.
• 595 locally acquired with known source.
• 377 local cases with no known source.
• 40 cases being investigated.
• 40 cases in ICU.
• 22 people being ventilated.
• People aged 20 – 29 largest group infected.
• Communities with clusters include: Broken Hill, Lake Macquarie, Manning, Waverley, Woollahra, Ryde, Macquarie Park, Dee Why, Manly, Nowra, Byron and Port Macquarie.

Dr Jeremy McAnulty said the decrease in new cases is encouraging, but cautioned a factor may be less testing conducted on weekends.

Testing in areas where there have been increased rates of community transmission will be bolstered. People living in Broken Hill, Lake Macquarie, Manning, Waverley, Woollahra, Ryde, Macquarie Park, Dee Why, Manly, Nowra, Byron and Port Macquarie are encouraged to seek testing if they have any covid-19 symptoms.

Dr McAnulty said the largest group of people infected are aged in their 20s, explaining 80 percent of people who contract covid-19 will have mild or moderate symptoms, but are at risk of unwittingly spreading the disease.

He warned young people to “take it very seriously regardless of your age.”

 Police Update:

• 97 international flights to date, with a total of 4,500 people in hotels rooms across Sydney.
• 200 people will return on home Wednesday.
• No cruise ships left in NSW waters, apart from the Ruby Princess.
• The Ruby Princess has docked at Port Kembla.
• Ships don’t have the capability to test for covid-19.
• The Ruby Princess will have a 10 day isolation period.
• There are 1,040 crew members 50 different countries on board.
• The ship has the capacity to manage 200 cases on board.
• Currently the ship has approximately 200 people with symptoms.
• Two crew members were taken off the vessel yesterday for medical care.
• There will be security at Port Kembla for the ship.