Sydney has reported a record number of new Covid-19 cases and five coronavirus related deaths, as authorities expanded the lockdown in Australia's largest city to neighbouring regions.
Six weeks after Sydney's five million residents were told to stay at home, the number of new infections in New South Wales state grew to 262, the largest daily tally since the pandemic began.
Health officials said almost all the new cases were in Sydney, but a handful of infections in other districts led state premier Gladys Berejiklian to widen stay-at-home restrictions.
Five positive tests in Newcastle, a coastal city of 320,000 people north of Sydney, prompted authorities to close schools and tell residents to stay at home for at least a week.