(Bloomberg) --
Brisbane will remain in lockdown until at least Sunday as Australia's third-largest city struggles to contain an outbreak of the delta variant of the coronavirus, which has also seen stay-at-home orders enforced in Sydney.
The lockdown in Brisbane and surrounding regions in the southeast of Queensland state, announced on Saturday, was due to end on Tuesday. It will be extended after authorities detected 13 new cases in the local community on Monday from the day before, Deputy Premier Steven Miles told reporters.
Australia Sets 70% Covid Vaccination Target to Start Reopening
The announcement comes after Sydney's delta-outbreak cases forced Australia's largest city into a lockdown that will be implemented for at least nine weeks until August 28.
Australia's federal government said Friday the country would begin reopening and avoid snap lockdowns once 70% of the entire adult population has been fully vaccinated. Plans to reopen have been hampered by Australia's tardy vaccine roll-out, with only enough doses to cover 24% of the population administered.
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