Fourth Covid wave hits Australia in time for Christmas raising fears of lockdown
The fourth Covid wave has arrived just in time for Christmas raising fears restrictions could return and ruin the festive holiday.
Cases rose drastically across the country with some states recording an 80 per cent uptick as several Covid variants run rampant.
BA.5, BA.2.75, XBB, and BQ.1 are among the strains circulating in the community, driving up infections, and evading immunity from vaccinations and past infections.
Some health experts called for restrictions such as face mask mandates to be reintroduced raising concerns more drastic measures like lockdowns could return.
Chief medical officer Paul Kelly eased concerns saying it was ‘not likely’ lockdown would return no matter how high case numbers soared.
‘You know, that’s not my decision but I don’t think that that’s likely,’ he said on Monday.
‘My advice at the moment is to be alert but not afraid, I think it would be a good way to look at it.
‘Now is a time to consider if you are due for a vaccine, go and get whatever you are eligible for and if you are in the higher risk groups, particularly people over the age of 70, make sure you have a plan to get antiviral treatments if you were to get infected.’
Even Deakin University chair of epidemiology Catherin Bennett, one of the loudest voices calling for more restrictions, admits lockdowns won’t happen.
‘Lockdowns won’t work, they don’t work with Omicron… we would only go back to that if we were absolutely desperate,’ she said.
‘If we had a variant that was bringing serious illness in a way we haven’t seen before, then we might need to resort to more enforced measures.’
Some form of restrictions could still be on the table in WA with chief health officer Andy Robertson suggesting face mask mandates could make a comeback.
‘There are always options we could look at, if for example, we got a variant that was a lot more severe or a lot more people were getting seriously unwell,’ he said.
‘There are obviously options we can consider, but at this stage we are just strongly encouraging isolation, mask wearing (around vulnerable people) and obviously people staying at home (if they are unwell).’
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Queensland upgraded its Covid traffic light system from green to amber on Thursday advising its residents to wear face masks in crowded public settings.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said NSW would not return to mandatory restrictions or isolating Covid cases, but urged people to use caution if they were sick.
‘We need to live alongside the virus. It’s not going away,’ he said on Friday.
‘We want people to be informed. My mantra is I want people to look out for each other.’
The state reported 12,450 Covid cases last week and another 19,800 this week, marking a 59 per cent spike.
Victorian Deputy Premier Jacinta Allan also said there has been no change to health advice in the state, despite a 62 per cent uptick in cases over the past week.
But the government did say face masks were a low-cost and highly effective tool to help reduce transmission.
‘It is a timely reminder,’ Ms Allen said on Friday.
‘Doesn’t matter whether you’ve got the cold, the flu or Covid it just makes sense to stay home if you’re sick.’
The state had 10,226 infections last week and 16,636 this week, an increase of 63 per cent.
NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant urged residents to get vaccinated as it was their best protection against the virus.
‘The wave is taking off with some trajectory, it will be quite a steep wave and hopefully the decline will be equally as steep,’ she told ABC.
‘That’s why it’s important the community takes these protective measures now and I can’t stress the urgency – if you’re going to get vaccinated, do it immediately.’
She expected the wave to peak before December and ease over the course of that month.
