Mobilenews24x7 Bureau
Canberra, Jan 18 : Australia on Tuesday reported 74 deaths due to Covid-19, the highest number since the pandemic started.
According to The Guardian, Queensland reported its deadliest day in the pandemic with 16 deaths and 15,962 Covid cases. Among them 10 were fully vaccinated, two had only one dose and four were unvaccinated. However, none of them had received booster dose.
New South Wales has reported a record 36 deaths and 29,830 new Covid-19 cases and Victoria reported 22 deaths and 20,180 new cases.
The Guardian quoted New South Wales chief health officer, Kerry Chant, as saying that the death toll would increase in the coming days.
To deal with the sharp spike in both Covid cases and deaths, the federal government has activated its private hospitals agreement.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said, “The private hospitals agreement will see up to 57,000 nurses and over 100,000 staff made available to Omicron affected areas around the country.”
According to a local media, Victoria has been declared ‘code brown’ emergency as its hospitals have been pushed to the limit and logistical changes are needed to tackle the increasing pressure.
Despite the rise in cases and deaths, the government has announced no further restrictions would be imposed.
Lauding the government’s decision, NSW premier, Dominic Perrottet said, “We believe the settings we have in place are appropriate. While the health system is under pressure, we are currently tracking better than the best case scenario. That is encouraging, reassuring and pleasing.”
