New locations and venues including a CBD food court have been flagged as places where people infected with COVID-19 have visited recently.
Bondi Icebergs Club and the MLC Centre food court in Sydney’s Martin Place have been flagged by NSW Health as venues recently visited by people infected with COVID-19.
The latest alert also includes the Macquarie University Soccer Fields, a gym at Mona Vale, Alma Avalon Restaurant and De'assis Collaroy Cafe.
Anyone who visited the MLC Centre food court on Dec. 15 between 1-2 p.m. is considered a casual contact and must get tested and isolate until a negative test is received.
Anyone who visited Bondi Icebergs Club last Sunday and Monday morning also needs to get tested and isolate until further advice.
There are also numerous alerts for northern beaches buses which are listed on the NSW Health website.
Meanwhile, the partial reprieve from lockdown for residents of Sydney’s northern beaches is now in force, with people at the epicentre of the recent COVID-19 outbreak able to welcome five visitors to their homes.
NSW now has a four-tiered system of restrictions between Christmas Eve and Boxing Day and will return to previous settings on Sunday, Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced on Wednesday.
The approach has split the northern beaches into two communities, with the toughest conditions reserved for those living north of the Narrabeen Bridge. The area is the epicentre of the recent cluster, which now totals 97 infections.
Residents in the far north of the peninsula can now host up to five people in their homes, as long as their visitors live in that designated zone which stretches to Palm Beach and Avalon.
Ten visitors are allowed at households in the southern part of the region, but locals can’t attend gatherings outside the zone. Primary school-aged children and younger are not included in the ten.
Pubs and clubs are still closed in the northern beaches, with residents only permitted to leave their homes for a limited set of reasons.
Restrictions for regional NSW remain unchanged, while up to 10 people and unlimited children aged under 12 will be permitted to visit another home over the three-day period.
All people on the northern beaches have been told to avoid visiting aged care facilities, while those in Greater Sydney have been advised to take extreme care.
Thousands of people will continue to self-isolate over Christmas after visiting a venue at the same time as a COVID-19 positive case.
NSW again recorded eight locally transmitted coronavirus cases in the 24 hours to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, with seven connected to the Avalon cluster.
The outbreak is also likely to affect Sydney’s New Year’s Eve plans.
The Australian Medical Association has called on the NSW government to cancel Sydney’s iconic fireworks display.
“The NSW government should consider cancelling the New Year’s Eve fireworks display to discourage crowds and avoid any confusion in its public messaging,” federal AMA president Omar Khorshid said.
“We must be prepared to tighten general restrictions even further if we continue to see evidence of the virus spreading in areas outside of the northern beaches.”
A decision about the New Year will be made after Christmas.
All state and territory borders are closed to people travelling from Greater Sydney.
