Australia COVID LIVE updates Victorias record day of 1965 new local cases NSW records 580 new cases as health authorities investigate new Delta strain

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NSW has reported 11 deaths due to COVID-19 in the latest reporting period, as well as 580 new local cases.

The deaths were in three women and eight men, with one person in their 50s, one in their 60s, four in their 70s, two in their 80s and three in their 90s.

Four of the people were not vaccinated, three were fully vaccinated and four had received one dose.

Five people were from south-western Sydney, three were from western Sydney and three were from south-eastern Sydney.

Two of the deaths were at aged care facilities.

One, a woman in her 80s, died at the Hardi Guildford Aged Care Facility, in the sixth death linked to an outbreak at the facility.

The other person, also a woman in her 80s, died at the Allity Beechwood Aged Care Facility, and was the fifth death linked to an outbreak there.

There have been 425 deaths since the start of NSW’s latest COVID-19 outbreak in June.

Health authorities are hoping to see a “decoupling” of cases and hospitalisations as vaccination figures continue to rise across NSW.

However, NSW’s Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said people need to make their own health decisions as restrictions are eased.

“Individuals need to make their own decisions as we work through this, it takes two to three weeks after the second dose for immunity to kick in so I would ask that people are a little bit cautious about going out and about when they’re in that period,” Dr Chant said on Saturday.

“Everyone, as we move to live with COVID, has to also adhere to their personal responsibility around vaccination and physical distancing, not going out and about when you’ve got symptoms of COVID, this is very much a shared responsibility.”

Dr Chant said that a further increase in first dose vaccinations beyond the state’s 90 per cent would give her “greater confidence and greater joy”.

“I have trust in the people of NSW and have trust in the framework.”

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Case numbers and hospitalisations are expected to increase as restrictions are eased in NSW for the fully vaccinated from Monday.

“We know that as we open up, case numbers will increase,” NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said on Saturday.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet addresses the media on Saturday.Credit:Rhett Wyman

“But what has been key to keeping people safe is our high vaccination rate. We have the highest vaccination rate in the country.

“But I know there’s a sense of excitement ... I just ask people over the course of the weekend, follow the rules that are in place.”

Mr Perrottet also encouraged people to treat hospitality workers with respect as they return to venues.

“There’ll be many young people who are 18, 19, who will be in retail roles on Monday, it will be a challenge for them. Please when you attend a cafe, a restaurant, a pub, please treat them with respect,” he said.

NSW has recorded 580 new locally acquired cases, and health authorities are investigating a new strain of the Delta variant that has been found in western Sydney.

The state’s Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said there is no evidence to suggest it is more transmissible or dangerous than the prominent Delta strain currently circulating in NSW.

“This is a new Delta strain identified through genome sequencing. As routine, we progressively do special testing ... and we’ve detected a genome of the Delta strain which is different from that that was previously transmitting in our community,” Dr Chant said on Saturday morning.

“We’ve linked that back to a person who returned from overseas but the exact mechanism of how that strain emerged and got into the community in western Sydney is still under investigation so we will update you as those investigations continue.

“But I want to reassure you that there’s nothing about this Delta strain ... that suggested it’s any more transmissible, going to cause illness or any other issues additional to the current Delta strain. So in essence, it is another Delta strain circulating in the community.”

There are currently 163 people in intensive care units and 812 admitted to hospital, Dr Chant said.

About 90 per cent of the state has now received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, with restrictions set to ease for people who have received both doses from Monday.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said “vaccination is key to our freedom and high rates of vaccination here in NSW has not just led the nation but led the world”.

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With restrictions set to ease for fully vaccinated people in NSW on Monday, surf life saving clubs are gearing up for bigger crowds at the state’s beaches.

Along with the traditional flags and patrols, beachgoers will be greeted by drones and emergency rescue beacons this year.

An influx of beachgoers is expected as COVID-19 restrictions are eased from Monday.Credit:Peter Rae

“While our State’s surf lifesavers begun patrolling on 18 September, in the midst of the most recent lockdown period, it is only this week that the rest of NSW can make a long-awaited return to our beaches,” Minister for Police and Emergency Services David Elliott said.

“This year 20 new ERBs have been rolled out at unpatrolled locations, to provide an added layer of protection for anyone enjoying NSW beaches, directly connecting people to the SLSNSW State Operations Centre in the case of an emergency.”

While large crowds are expected at beaches once stay-at-home restrictions are lifted, NSW Surf Life Saving chief executive Steven Pearce urged people to be stay safe in the water.

“Please don’t take unnecessary risks that could put your life and those you love in danger as well as put unnecessary strain on our volunteers. We are prepared but we need the cooperation of everyone to keep our beaches safe for everyone to enjoy,” he said.

“With 129 patrolled locations there is plenty of beautiful coastline for everyone to re-discover and enjoy.”

With case numbers in Victoria continuing to rise, this is what the state’s COVID-19 infection curve looks like:

Victoria’s COVID-19 case numbers continue to follow â€" perhaps slightly exceed â€" the Burnet Institute’s projections for reopening, with the growing effect of vaccination counteracted so far by increases in movement among the population.

However, data suggests Victoria is unlikely to have as many hospitalisations and deaths as there were in NSW because the state is further advanced in its vaccine rollout than NSW was when it had similar case numbers.

Modelling commissioned by the Victorian government and released alongside the state’s road map to reopening forecast new cases would reach about 2000 a day on October 10 before plateauing, then jumping again when lockdown lifted at the end of October.

The end point of the Burnet Institute’s projections are troubling: peak hospital demand of 3150 patients, peak ICU demand of 706, and a better than one-in-two chance of overwhelming the healthcare system.

Although it is early, Victoria is so far tracking on that path â€" or indeed slightly above the predicted daily case numbers.

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