Dan Andrews warns Victorians in NSW to 'get back quickly' as ALL of the state and Canberra is declared a 'red zone' and the border will close TONIGHT
- NSW recorded 77 new cases on Sunday as latest coronavirus outbreak worsens
Daniel Andrews has issued a dire warning to fellow Victorians in New South Wales to 'get home quickly' before the borders are slammed shut at midnight Sunday.
Victorians south of the border are scrambling to rush home with the state's border could be slammed shut within hours as NSW's latest coronavirus outbreak worsens.
NSW recorded 77 new cases and one death on Sunday, amid growing speculation lockdown will be extended beyond July 16.
Within hours, Victoria's acting chief health officer declared that all of NSW and the Australian Capital Territory will become a red zone under Victoria’s travel permit system from midnight Sunday.
Victoria could shut its borders with NSW within hours after NSW recorded 77 new cases on Sunday. Pictured is Sydney's CBD on Saturday
'We do not want this virus here in our state,' Mr Andrews told reporters on Sunday.
'I am not being critical of Victorians in NSW but if you are there, get back and get back quickly,'
'You have been warned about circumstances changing quickly and that may well occur in the next hours.'
'We've been abundantly clear: If you are there and you are coming home any time soon I'd come back today. Don't delay, come back today. '
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian expects new case numbers to hit triple figures on Monday as the current outbreak surges toward 600 cases.
Daniel Andrews has urged Victorians south of the border to get home 'as quickly as possible' as the NSW coronavirus outbreak worsens
Those from red zones, including Sydney must isolate for 14 days upon their return, while orange zone arrivals are ordered to get tested and isolate until they return a negative result.
Mr Andrews had this warning for Victorians rushing home.
'After you've received your permit, please follow the conditions of that permit … this is just a fact and it needs to be said if you do the wrong thing you will be found you will be fined and you have every chance of becoming very, very famous,' he said.
If the border closures go ahead, it will be the second time Victoria has shut off to NSW within seven months after they were slammed shut last December in the wake of the outbreak on Sydney's northern beaches.
Victoria recorded its 11th consecutive day without a locally-acquired case on Sunday.
Mr Andrews has refused to rule out all of NSW as a no-go zone, despite not having the backing of federal health officials.
'I won't hesitate to do it,' he said.
Border checkpoints at the NSW/Victoria borders (pictured) would be reinstated within hours
Australia's chief medical officer Paul Kelly said federal officials did not back shutting the NSW border.
'Internal border closures are a matter for the state governments but we don't support it at a Commonwealth level,' he told reporters in Canberra.
'Victorians remember last winter and they want to make sure that they are protected.
'That is a matter of course for the elected government of Victoria to consider. It is not an easy thing to do, to close the border with NSW.
'There are many, many places that people can cross that border who I am sure it will be decision not taken lightly."
NSW's current Covid-19 outbreak is expected to worsen in the coming days. Pictured is a healthcare worker at testing clinic in Fairfield in Sydney's south-west
