Two more Australians DIE of the coronavirus bringing the national total to five

Australia’s coronavirus death toll has risen to five.   

Queensland Health on Sunday confirmed a woman from Noosaville on the Sunshine Coast died after arriving in Sydney on Friday.

The 77-year-old was rushed to hospital but died that day.  

A 90-year-old woman confirmed to have COVID-19 also died on Saturday.

The elderly woman is believed to have caught the deadly disease from a relative who had returned recently from the US.

Pedestrians are pictured walking in front of sales signs in Sydney on Sunday. Australia’s coronavirus death toll has risen to five

It comes as Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Sunday that from midnight all people coming to Australia will have to self-isolate for 14 days.  

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 298

New South Wales: 134

Victoria: 57

Queensland: 61

South Australia: 20

Western Australia: 18

Tasmania: 6

Northern Territory: 1 

Australian Capital Territory: 1 

TOTAL CASES:  298

DEAD: 5  

The prime minister also announced cruise ships will be banned from docking in Australian ports for at least 30 days.

The drastic measures come as the number of confirmed cases in Australia climbs to almost 300. 

‘This is very important. What we have seen in recent weeks is more countries having issues with the virus and that means that the source of some of those transitions are coming – transmissions are coming from those countries,’ he said.

Penalties for not self-isolating will be determined by states and territories. 

Social distancing measures are also now required, Mr Morrison said.

From Monday, gatherings of more than 500 people have been banned. 

Limitations on large gatherings in enclosed areas such as theatres are expected to be made later in the week.  

People wearing face masks pictured in front of the Queen Victoria Building in Sydney. The 77-year-old confirmed to have died from the virus is believed to have caught the disease from a relative who had recently returned from the US 

Mr Morrison said the measures were to restrict social interactions and lower the risk of widespread outbreak. 

‘There will be no more handshakes…which was something that was not needed a few weeks ago. It is a precautionary step,’ he said.

‘There will be further intrusions and there will be further restrictions on peoples movements.’

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Sunday that from midnight all people coming to Australia will have to self-isolate for 14 days 

Symptoms of the virus include a fever, cough, sore throat and shortness of breath

Mr Morrison insisted schools will remain open.

‘When you take children out of schools and put them back in the broader community, the ability for them to potentially engage with others increases the risk.’

A travel ban has already been put in place for mainland China, Iran, South Korea and Italy. 

Last week the government banned ‘non essential’ public gatherings of more than 500 people from Monday. 

The ban will have stunning consequences for sporting codes, such as the NRL and AFL. Festivals, religious services, concerts and plays – even school assemblies – will be called into doubt.  

Sydney’s Royal Easter Show will be cancelled in the wake of the prime minister’s statement, as have further Melbourne Fashion Festival shows. 

Some calm amid the chaos: Shoppers form an orderly line at a Coles supermarket as staff hand out one pack of toilet paper to each customer 

Video has emerged of a line of Australian shoppers queuing in a calm, orderly fashion as supermarket staff hand out packs of toilet paper.

In the video, posted to Reddit on Saturday, a line of people can be seen stretching the length of the entire aisle of a Coles supermarket as they patiently wait.

People from around the world commented on the video saying this was being done the correct way.

‘Australia doing it the right way,’ one person said.

The footage makes a contrast with other videos that have emerged from Australian supermarkets showing customers arguing and fighting with each other over toilet paper.

A video posted this week, understood to have been filmed at an Aldi store in Western Sydney, showed customers stampeding into the toilet paper aisle as soon as the shop’s doors opened.

Commenters on the orderly queue video observed that people waiting to buy the item were likely running low rather than people hoarding or panic-buying.

‘When you need toilet paper and you feel like a moron because you know it is stupid to stand in line and yet here you are,’ one person said.

Supermarkets across the country have been cleaned out of toilet paper in the last week due to panic-buying amid coronavirus concerns.

Shoppers are now arriving at stores hours ahead of deliveries of the product.

Coles, along with Woolworths and Aldi have implemented a one pack per customer limit for the item.

The move has been hailed by infectious disease experts, who say it will be critical in slowing the virus’s spread and help prevent overloading hospital intensive care units. 

The pandemic has seen the world grind to a halt as fear and uncertainty grips the globe. 

Italy became the first country in Europe last week to impose a lockdown to combat the spreading Covid-19 illness as more than 17,000 people are infected. 

The Mediterranean country’s death toll hit over 1,200 – making Italy the worst-hit country outside of China, where the disease first incubated.  

 Last week the government banned ‘non essential’ public gatherings of more than 500 people from Monday (pictured a Sharks and a Rabbitohs fan sit in the stand before Saturday’s round one match between the two sides)

Under current lockdown rules, shops – except pharmacies, supermarkets, and newsagents – are to remain closed at all times. 

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF THE CORONAVIRUS?

Once someone has caught the virus it may take between two and 14 days for them to show any symptoms.

If and when they do, typical signs include:

• a runny nose
• a cough
• sore throat
• fever (high temperature)

The vast majority of patients – at least 97 per cent, based on available data – will recover from these without any issues or medical help.

In a small group of patients, who seem mainly to be the elderly or those with long-term illnesses, it can lead to pneumonia. 

Pneumonia is an infection in which the insides of the lungs swell up and fill with fluid. It makes it increasingly difficult to breathe and, if left untreated, can be fatal and suffocate people. 

Schools and universities, which closed on March 4, are expected to remain shut until April 3.  

Spain and France are also now on lockdown to stop the spread. 

America has also shuts its doors to travellers from Europe. 

The virus has already caused wide-spread panic in Australia with shoppers stripping supermarket shelves of toilet paper and other essential items.

People have also been queuing for hours to be tested for the deadly virus. 

The queue outside a test centre at Royal Melbourne Hospital ran for half a block on Tuesday evening, with scores of possible patients wearing face masks as they waited for a doctor’s examination.

Inside the city’s Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, people waiting to see a doctor were seated metres apart from one another to minimise the chance of the virus spreading.

Some schools and workplaces have closed their doors amid coronavirus scares. 

Globally, the infection has spread to more than 150,000 people across 112 countries, and killed at least 5,500 people.

 

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