Covid update: Saturday
9th October 2021
98 NEW LOCAL CASES COVID UPDATE - 11.10am Saturday October 9 Another 98 new cases were reported in the Hunter health district in the 24 hours to 8pm last night, including 28 in Lake Macquarie. These new cases take the total number in the latest local outbreak to 1630. EASY GUIDE TO RESTRICTIONS CHANGES: Before I detail today's case numbers, here's a good summary of the changes which come into effect on Monday for people who are fully vaccinated. Please remember that existing restrictions remain in place for people who are single dosed or unvaccinated. Things will change for those people in about two weeks when the State hits 80% full vaccination and from December 1 when all restrictions will be lifted, regardless of vaccination status. Details on Monday's changes HERE. Of today's new cases in the Hunter-New England district:
28 are from Lake Macquarie LGA- 2 in Belmont North
- 1 in Belmont South
- 5 in Bolton Point
- 1 in Bonnells Bay
- 1 in Charlestown
- 1 in Gateshead
- 1 in Morisset
- 2 in Mount Hutton
- 1 in Swansea
- 3 in Toronto
- 2 in Warners Bay
- 8 in Windale
24 are from Cessnock LGA- 2 in Aberdare
- 3 in Abermain
- 8 in Cessnock
- 2 in Cliftleigh
- 1 in Congewei
- 1 in East Branxton
- 1 in Ellalong
- 1 in Kearsley
- 1 in Kurri Kurri
- 1 in Lovedale
- 1 in Paxton
- 2 in Weston
13 are from Maitland LGA- 2 in Aberglasslyn
- 1 in Bolwarra Heights
- 3 in East Maitland
- 2 in Maitland
- 1 in Rutherford
- 3 in Thornton
- 1 in Woodberry
15 are from Newcastle LGA- 1 in Cooks Hill
- 1 in Fletcher
- 2 in Hamilton East
- 1 in Lambton
- 2 in Mayfield
- 3 in Merewether
- 1 in Merewether Heights
- 1 in Shortland
- 1 in Wallsend
- 1 in Waratah
- 1 in Waratah West
5 are from Tamworth Regional LGA- 1 in Calala
- 2 in Oxley Vale
- 1 in South Tamworth
- 1 in West Tamworth
4 are from Mid Coast LGA- 1 in Purfleet
- 3 in Taree
4 are from Muswellbrook LGA- 3 in Muswellbrook
- 1 in Muswellbrook South
1 is from Glen Innes Severn- 1 in Emmaville
1 is from Gunnedah LGA- 1 in Gunnedah
1 is from Port Stephens LGA- 1 in Karuah
1 is from Singleton LGA- 1 in Broke
1 is from Upper Hunter Shire LGA- 1 in Green Creek
28 local people are being cared for in hospital. Three are in ICU. STATUS AND CLOSE CONTACTS: Of those new cases, 48 are linked, 21 are unlinked and 29 are still under investigation. Further, 41 were infectious in the community, while 45 were isolating while infectious and the remaining 12 are still under investigation. We still have 1074 active cases in the Hunter Region. EXPOSURE SITES: Dora Creek Chemsave Pharmacy and Whitebridge Cellars are among the new exposure sites named by Hunter-New England Health overnight. More details on the new sites (including a link to the full list at NSW Health) are are on my website HERE. VAX CLINIC FOR HOSPITALITY WORKERS: The Belmont vaccination hub will be offering priority vaccinations for all hospitality workers tomorrow (Sunday) from 8am to 2.45pm. If you work in clubs, restaurants, cafes, hotels etc, book HERE. TRAVEL RULE CHANGED: As I mentioned yesterday, the travel rule for fully vaccinated people has been changed and will be effective from Monday when some other restrictions are lifted. Please remember that these changes only apply to fully vaccinated people - the existing 'stay at home' rules apply for everyone else.- Fully vaccinated people in Lake Macquarie will NOT be able to travel to the Central Coast or Sydney from Monday unless it's for work or compassionate reasons.
- Likewise, fully vaccinated people from Sydney or the CC cannot travel to Lake Macquarie or other regional areas.
- Those restrictions will be lifted in about two weeks when the vax target hits 80%.
- Fully vaccinated people from Lake Macquarie and the Hunter CAN travel to other regional areas from Monday, such as Forster, Coffs Harbour, the South Coast or Byron Bay.
NEW TESTING CLINIC FOR RATHMINES: As I mentioned yesterday, a new drive-thru testing clinic will open at Rathmines on Monday. The clinic, run by 4Cyte Pathology, will operate in Rathmines Park on the former RAAF base. It will operate Mon-Fri from 7.30am to 3.30pm, and on Saturdays from 7.30am - noon. Meanwhile, the testing clinic at Morisset will be operating seven days a week throughout October. STATEWIDE: There were 580 new cases reported throughout NSW in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. Sadly, another 11 deaths were recorded over the past 24 hours. HOSPITALISATIONS: There are now 812 people currently being treated for Covid-19 in NSW hospitals, with 163 in ICU and 75 requiring ventilators. STATEWIDE VACCINATIONS: To 11.59pm on Thursday 7 October across NSW, 89.8 per cent of the over-16 population had received a first dose COVID-19 vaccine, and 71.5 per cent were fully vaccinated. TESTING: The importance of getting tested has never been more important in the local area. Please don't be complacent. If you experience any symptoms, please get tested as soon as possible. QUESTIONS: Please see my Facebook or Website pages for answers to frequently asked questions. Service NSW also has a 24/7 hotline where people are available to answer questions. You can reach them on 13 77 88. STAY SAFE, stay vigilant, and stay home unless you absolutely have to go somewhere.