Melbourne, Dec 4 (BUS): A coronavirus variant of the Omicron spread in Australia on Saturday, testing plans to reopen the economy as a cluster in Sydney grew to 13 cases and an infection was suspected in Queensland.
Reuters reported that federal authorities are sticking with a plan to reopen the economy in the hope that the new alternative will be more moderate than previous pressures, but some state and territory governments have moved to tighten their controls at local borders.
Australia reported the first community transmission of Omicron on Friday at a school in Sydney. Authorities are investigating the source and said more cases are expected.
Queensland authorities suspect the first case of Omicron has appeared in a person who traveled from South Africa and that genome sequencing is ongoing.
“The public health unit has ruled it out to be a delta but we haven’t been able to confirm if it’s omicron or not,” State Health Secretary Yvette Dath said. “But it is treated as if it were.”
Authorities in South Australia said on Saturday that arrivals from New South Wales, Victoria and the capital area will be tested. The country reopened its internal borders just days ago for the first time in months.
Several thousand people protested against vaccination mandates in Melbourne, with demonstrations now a weekly event attracting groups of ordinary citizens, as well as conspiracy theorists and far-right supporters.
A smaller counter-protest called for the city’s far-right movement to be halted and for vaccinations to be supported.
Victoria, home to Melbourne, requires full vaccination to access most non-essential hospitality and retail services, as well as work in healthcare and many other industries.
Health data has shown that nearly 88% of Australians over the age of 16 have been fully vaccinated.
Anti-vaccination backers are in single digits in Australia, according to opinion polls. But unvaccinated patients make up the vast majority of those hospitalized with coronavirus. Health data in Victoria showed that 90% of 44 people in intensive care were not fully vaccinated.
Despite fighting several outbreaks this year, leading to months of lockdown in Sydney and Melbourne – Australia’s largest – the country had only about 834 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 7.9 deaths per 100,000 people, according to the World Health Organization. , which is a fraction of many other developed countries.
Australia has just under 215,000 cases in total and 2,042 deaths.
NS