Sydney braces for rise in COVID-19 cases as Delta outbreak worsens

SYDNEY - Australia's most populous state, New South Wales (NSW), on Friday warned residents to brace an increase in COVID-19 infections over the next few days as it reported the biggest daily rise in locally acquired cases recorded so far this year.

Country-wide, Australia is fighting outbreaks of the highly infections Delta variant simultaneously in three state capital cities, meaning nearly half of all Australians are currently under strict orders to stay at home. NSW capital Sydney, Australia's largest city and home to a fifth of the country's 25 million population, is half-way through a two-week lockdown imposed in a bid to contain the Delta variant.