25 July 2020

Fifteen new cases of COVID-19 were diagnosed in the 24 hours to 8.00pm last night.

This morning NSW Health has identified four additional cases associated with a series of funeral gatherings and a church service attended by a woman in her 40s from the Fairfield area, a case reported on Thursday. The additional cases are a couple in their 60s from North Coast and a couple in their 50s and 60s from South Western Sydney. Contact tracing is continuing.

Attendees of the following funeral and other church services are now urged to immediately self-isolate, get tested for COVID-19 regardless of any symptoms, and continue to self-isolate for 14 days even if the test is negative. If symptoms develop get tested again. Testing is available at Fairfield Hospital and Fisher Street carpark, Cabramatta drive-through clinic.

The services attended were:

  • 16 July: St Brendan’s Catholic Church Bankstown for one hour from 6.30pm
  • 17 July: Ausia Funeral Services at Fairfield East between 1pm and 8pm
  • 18 July: Funeral service at St Brendan’s Catholic Church Bankstown for one hour from 10am
  • 18 July: Burial service at St John of God Lawn at Rookwood between 11.30-1pm
  • 19 July: Our Lady of Mt Carmel at Mt Pritchard for one hour from 7.30am

Of the fifteen new case reported to 8 pm last night:

CasesCount
Confirmed cases (including interstate residents in NSW health care facilities) 3,465
Deaths (in NSW from confirmed cases) 51
Cases reported recovered2,799
Total tests carried out 1,327,964

One previously reported case has been excluded, bringing the total number of cases in NSW to 3,465.

There were 30,535 tests reported in the 24-hour reporting period, compared with the record 36,169 in the previous 24 hours.

The 15 new cases are:

  • eight associated with the Thai Rock restaurant cluster
  • one case under investigation
  • six returned travellers in hotel quarantine.

Of the eight Thai Rock cluster cases:

  • Two cases who attended Cerdon College in Merrylands were close contacts of a confirmed case who attended Our Lady of Lebanon church
  • Six are contacts of existing cases linked to Thai Rock cases. Among those are two school children who attended Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School in Bossley Park and Freeman Catholic College at Bonnyrigg Heights
  • All three schools are closed while contact tracing and cleaning is underway.

There were no new cases linked to the Crossroads Hotel today. There are now 56 cases associated with the Crossroads Hotel cluster, 60 cases associated with the Thai Rock restaurant (including 9 associated with Our Lady of Lebanon Church), and eight cases associated with the Batemans Bay Soldiers Club.

While most cases have been linked to known clusters, community transmission continues and NSW Health is calling on people across the state to redouble their efforts to stop the virus spreading.

Key messages for the community are:

  • Avoid non-essential travel and gatherings. Of particular concern is transmission in venues such as hotels and restaurants, the gym and social gatherings.
  • Anyone feeling unwell – even with the mildest of symptoms such as a runny nose or scratchy throat – must seek testing and self-isolate until they get the result. Stay at home, and do not go to work or catch public transport until you are cleared of COVID-19
  • At all times stay 1.5 m from other people. Don’t go anywhere there is crowding.
  • Clean your hands regularly with soap and running water for 20 seconds or use alcohol base hand rub.
  • Cough and sneeze into your elbow.
  • Don’t host, or go to, a gathering of more than 10 people at home.
  • Don’t go to the gym unless the equipment is thoroughly cleaned before and after customer use by supervising staff or yourself, and there is good spacing between machines and customers.
  • Consider using a mask in situations where you are unable to social distance, particularly indoors.

A full list of COVID-19 testing clinics is available, and people can visit their GP.

If people have been directed to undertake a 14-day self-isolation period, they must stay in isolation for the full period, even if they undertake a test that comes back negative. This is because early testing may not detect an infection, and release from self-isolation based on a negative test could allow an infectious person to infect others in the community. The self-isolation period is 14 days as most people who are infected and develop symptoms will develop symptoms within 14 days of infection.

People who work in high-risk settings such as healthcare facilities or aged care homes must not to attend work if they have symptoms and must get tested immediately. People should also not visit relatives in these settings if they have even the mildest of symptoms or have recently returned from Victoria or attended affected venues.

There are 97 COVID-19 cases being treated by NSW Health, with four in intensive care. One is being ventilated and on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). In NSW, 2,799 people are known to have recovered from COVID-19.

Confirmed cases to date

By likely source of infectionCount
Overseas 2,009
Interstate acquired 76
Locally acquired – contact of a confirmed case and/or in a known cluster 1,012
Locally acquired – contact not identified 367
Under investigation 1
Total 3,465

Counts reported for a particular day may vary over time with ongoing enhanced surveillance activities.

Returned travellers in hotel quarantine to date

Since 29 March 2020Count
Symptomatic travellers tested 4,093
Found positive 119
Since 30 June 2020Count
Asymptomatic travellers screened at a day 2 7,835
Found positive4852
Since 15 May 2020Count
Asymptomatic travellers screened at a day 1021,456
Found positive111

Watch the video update. ​