Four new cases of COVID-19 have been detected in the Hunter New England region in the 24 hours to 8pm last night.
One of the infections is in Wallsend, another is in Windale, one is in North Rothbury and the final case is in Raymond Terrace.
All cases are linked to previously reported infections and the Windale case was infectious in the community.
714 close contacts are in isolation and 31 people are currently being cared for in hospital.
The new detections take the total number in the current outbreak to 168. There are 114 active infections.
Hunter New England Health’s Dr David Durrheim said the Windale case was living in an apartment block at 17-19 James Street.
“This case contracted their illness after travelling to Sydney and is not linked to the Costco cluster,” he said.
“The confirmed case is isolating off-site, and the District is arranging urgent onsite testing for affected residents. All residents have been contacted and advised to isolate until tested.
“It is essential that anyone who visited the apartment complex from the evening of Friday 20 August to the morning of Tuesday 24 August, get tested and isolate until a negative result is received.”
It comes as NSW reported 919 new cases and two more deaths.
A 30-year-old mother of three, who has become one of the youngest people to die of COVID-19 in the state, passed away at her home in Emerton in western Sydney.
A man in his 80s from Sydney’s north died at Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital, having acquired his infection at the Greenwood Aged Care in Normanhurst.
The message from NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian remained clear – get vaccinated.
“Nearly one third of our population is fully vaccinated,” she said on Wednesday.
“If we keep these rates up we will hit further milestones.”
There are more than 410 testing clinics open across NSW. For a complete list and booking details, please visit: health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/covid-19/Pages/clinics.aspx
With AAP.
Get all the latest Newcastle news, sport, entertainment, lifestyle, competitions and more delivered straight to your inbox with the Newcastle Weekly Daily Newsletter. Sign up here.
For more news:
