SYDNEY, Dec 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) – The public are barred from viewing Sydney’s New Year eve fireworks from the harbour foreshore, and told to spend the holiday at home, amid concerns over COVID-19.
Sydney recorded three new locally acquired cases today, taking a cluster in the city to 129 infections.
A shortened seven-minute firework display was planned for New Year eve. However, members of the public were told, they would not be able to enter designated zones around the city centre and harbour’s edge, unless granted an exemption by the government.
Venues within the zone were able to hold planned functions, however, a limit on attendance numbers was tightened to one person per four square metres.
“My strong message to everyone in Greater Sydney this year is, to watch the fireworks on TV,” New South Wales (NSW) Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, said.
A special vantage point, set aside for frontline health and emergency workers, was also cancelled.
Despite recording only single figure daily increases in case numbers for the past week, the Northern Beaches region of Sydney remained in lockdown.
Residents were barred from leaving but told they would be allowed to hold small gatherings of people from the same area, on the New Year eve and the following day.
“This hasn’t been an easy Christmas period, but our contact tracers have been able to get on top of this outbreak, and the number of new cases remains low,” NSW Health Minister, Brad Hazzard, said.
Outside of the lockdown area, residents were allowed a maximum of 10 visitors to their homes. However, they were warned that with cases detected at several venues across the city, the risk to Greater Sydney was increasingly severe.
Authorities slammed a small number of people, who had broken health orders, including more than a dozen people, who left the northern beaches, to attend a wedding in the inner-city suburb of Pyrmont.– NNN-AGENCIES
