27 MARCH 2020
ISSUE 235
YOUR REAL INDEPENDENT WEEKLY LOCAL NEWS
SHUTDOWN
News
As Prime Minister Scott Morrison urged all Australians abroad to head for home, Central Coast residents all over the globe were faced with cutting holidays short See page 8
News
38 confirmed COVID-19 cases The Central Coast Local Health District (CCLHD) has advised that cases of COVID-19 on the Coast have more than doubled since Monday with 38 cases now confirmed for the region. Of the 38 cases, five people have recovered and are no longer in isolation, while all others are being monitored at home in isolation, with no cases currently requiring hospitalisation. While the number of cases is accelerating, so too are the number of tests being taken, and so this pattern
may not be as alarming as it might first seem. Nevertheless, CCLHD has announced that it will reprioritise all surgery appointments to create more capacity in intensive care units in anticipation of an increase demand in relation to the Coronavirus. Hospitals will also be conducting outpatient clinic appointments over the phone or by video where possible, to reduce close contact. CCLHD Chief Executive, Dr Andrew Montague, stressed that there would be no impact to emergency and trauma patients, as well as urgent surgery cases and said District
staff will communicate directly with affected patients about rescheduling where necessary. The full release from Central Coast Health is available on our website. Across the state, 190 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed as of 8pm on Wednesday by NSW Health, bringing NSW’s total number of confirmed cases up to 1,219, with over 72,780 cases tested and excluded from the total. Overseas travel remains the highest source of the infection with 647 of the state’s cases confirmed as being acquired overseas.
Of the confirmed cases 16 are in intensive care with 10 requiring ventilators. The state also has its first four confirmed cases in children under the age of 10 with a 2-month-old boy, a 1-year-old girl, a 2-year-old-girl and a 7-year-old girl all confirmed as having the virus. The increase in confirmed cases comes as the NSW Government commenced tougher lockdown protocols on Monday, March 23, including the closure of all pubs, clubs, restaurants, food courts and other public meeting venues. The new protocols included a
recommendation that all people stay at home unless they need to do otherwise. A ban on all overseas travel, a ban on real estate auctions and inspections, restrictions on the number of guests at weddings and sadly, a limit of 10 mourners at all funerals. There is also now a ban on extended family barbeques and other gatherings. On Thursday, NSW Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, said new powers had been given to the police to enforce these restrictions. Reporter: Ross Barry
Commercial fishing operators working across the Central Coast are struggling to stay afloat in the wake of the State's reform to the industry. See page 10
Business
Local call centres have helped this Australian telecom company in avoiding the strain of the crisis. See page 21
Second economic support package announced The Federal Government’s second economic support package, announced on March 22, has been applauded by the Central Coast business community. The $66.1B package follows on from the Government’s first stimulus package of $17.6B, and will see eligible small businesses on the Coast able to apply for up to $100,000 in support funding, and people in stress able to access up to $10,000 of their superannuation
in 2019-20, and a further $10,000 in 2020-21. Member for Robertson, Lucy Wicks, said the plan aimed to “cushion the economic impact of the coronavirus and help build a bridge to recovery. “A total of $189B is being injected into the economy by all arms of Government in order to keep Australians in work and businesses in business, including in the Electorate of Robertson,” Wicks said. Continued page 6
Woy Woy Philosophy Society
Missive #13: Spinoza’s Taxonomy of Knowledge … and dunny roll
“I’d like to see the bloody virus get through that!” It may not have been Robbo’s best idea ever, to meet in the empty Gosford Leagues carpark, but after we’d arranged all five of our Hiluxes into circular formation (just like General Custer), we really did feel quite invincible. See page 29
Puzzles page 28
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