Regional NSW area is plunged BACK into lockdown after only three days of eased restrictions
- Region of Yass, 280km south-west of Sydney plunged into lockdown for 14 days
- Stay at home orders come into effect at 12.01am Tuesday after local Covid case
- Yass was one of the NSW regional areas where lockdown was lifted on Saturday
One New South Wales region has been plunged back into lockdown just two days after restrictions were eased after just one coronavirus case was discovered.
At least 6,500 residents in the town of Yass, south-west of Sydney near Canberra, will enter a two week lockdown after a local case of Covid-19 was confirmed on Monday afternoon.
Stay at home orders will come into effect at 12.01am Tuesday.
Health officials have been on high alert for several days after an increase of Covid-19 fragments were detected in sewage at the Yass treatment plant.
The region of Yass in the NSW southern tablelands will go back into lockdown for at least two weeks after a local case emerged.
‘Urgent investigations and contact tracing are underway, NSW Health said.
Health officials are also working hard to to identify venues of concern and exposure sites.
Stay at home orders apply to residents in the Yass Valley Council area or anyone who has been there on or after September 9.
They also apply to the nearby town of Murrumbateman.
Residents can only leave home for five essential reasons and must wear a face mask in all indoor or outdoor areas, other than a place of residence.
‘This includes when you are on a street, in a park, at the shops or at work. There are limited exceptions, such as where you are in a vehicle with members of your household or your nominated visitor (‘singles bubble’), when exercising, when eating or drinking, and in emergencies,’ NSW Health said.
Valid reasons to leave home include shopping for essential goods and services, medical care or compassionate needs, work or tertiary education, or attending a wedding or funeral.
Fully vaccinated residents are also permitted to attend an outdoor gathering of up to five people for exercise or outdoor recreation.
Residents in the town of Yass have been urged to come forward for testing after confirmation of a positive Covid case
‘It’s disappointing and frustrating, that we’ve just come out of stay-at-home orders, having to now go back into it at midnight tonight,’ Yass mayor Rowena Abbey told NCA NewsWire.
‘But obviously, we need to be on top of where people have potentially been and where this positive person has been, and make sure that the community stays safe.’
NSW Health has urged residents with the mildest of symptoms to come forward for testing.
A drive-through testing clinic will be open at Walker Park from 8am-4pm for the rest of the week.
The Yass Hotel will be forced to shut its doors again, two days after it reopened for the first time in a month
Located in the NSW southern tablelands, Yass is 280 km south-west of Sydney and an hour’s drive from Canberra.
It was one of the NSW regions that exited a month-long lockdown on Saturday.
NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro previously warned that regional communities could be shut down again for a minimum of 14 days if just a single case of coronavirus emerged locally.
‘It is important that we protect the communities. One case is one case too many in the regions,’ he said last week.