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What you need to know about COVID-19 today, Monday April 6.

Australian death toll at 41.

A sixth resident of Sydney aged care facility, Dorothy Henderson Lodge, has died of coronavirus.

The 90-year-old man was confirmed dead on Monday evening. At the time of reporting, 16 residents and five staff members of the Macquarie Park facility had tested positive for COVID-19.

“I have been on the phone this afternoon with the resident’s family, and I grieve with them in their loss,” BaptistCare CEO Ross Low said.

“Our residents are not just numbers; they are beloved individuals in our care and the very reason we exist.”

A man in his 80s also died from the virus in Royal Perth Hospital today, while a man in his 50s and a woman in her 80s have died in Victoria, bringing Australia’s current death toll to 41.

Two men – one aged 86 and one aged 85 – died on Sunday in New South Wales – with the state recording 57 new cases in the last 24 hours.

 

The current COVID-19 figures.

 

 

NSW says more than a quarter of their coronavirus cases are in people aged under 29, with 105 under the age of 19, with authorities urging young people to take the virus more seriously. Three people in their 30s have been put on ventilators in intensive care.

Several more beaches in Sydney had to be closed after people were seen gathering in large numbers over the weekend, once again flouting new coronavirus rules.

Manly, North Steyne, Queenscliff, Freshwater, Shelly Beach and Palm Beach in Sydney’s northern beaches have now been closed.

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Nationally there are more than 5,750 cases as of Monday morning.

The Queen has given a war-time TV address.

Queen Elizabeth has told the British people they would overcome the coronavirus outbreak if they stayed resolute in the face of lockdown and self-isolation, invoking the spirit of World War II in an extremely rare TV address.

In what was only the fifth broadcast of her 68-year reign, Elizabeth called upon Britons to show the resolve of their forebears and demonstrate they were as strong as generations of the past.

“Together we are tackling this disease, and I want to reassure you that if we remain united and resolute, then we will overcome it,” the 93-year-old monarch said in the address from her Windsor Castle home, where she is staying with her husband Prince Philip, 98.

WATCH: A snippet of the Queen’s speech. Post continues after video.

“While we have faced challenges before, this one is different. This time we join with all nations across the globe in a common endeavour, using the great advances of science and our instinctive compassion to heal. We will succeed – and that success will belong to every one of us.”

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The broadcast came hours after officials said the death toll in Britain from the virus had risen by 621 in the last 24 hours to 4934, with high fatalities still expected in the next week.

The Queen usually only speaks to the nation in her annual televised Christmas Day message.

In order to ensure any risk to the elderly monarch herself was mitigated, it was filmed in a big room to allow a safe distance between her and the cameraman, who wore gloves and a mask and was the only other person present.

Elizabeth said the situation reminded her of her first ever broadcast in 1940, when she and her late sister Margaret spoke from Windsor to children who had been evacuated from their homes to escape bombing raids by Nazi German aircraft.

Queen address
The Queen giving an address as a child. Image: The Royal Family.
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She said that in the future, people could take pride in how they too had dealt with such a challenge and disruption to their lives.

She also sent a message to Australia, noting that we've already dealt with devastating bushfires and recent flooding, but she is "confident that the stoic and resilient nature of the Australian people will rise to the challenge".

"You remain in my prayers in coming months and I send my thanks and warmest good wishes to you all," said the official statement.

UK Prime Minister taken to hospital.

Boris Johnson, 55,  has been taken to hospital 10 days after testing positive to coronavirus.

Downing Street says the UK Prime Minister has been sent "as a precaution" because he is still suffering from the symptoms of the disease.

"On the advice of his doctor, the Prime Minister has tonight been admitted to hospital for tests.

Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson has been taken to hospital as a "precaution." Image: Getty.
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"This is a precautionary step, as the Prime Minister continues to have persistent symptoms of coronavirus 10 days after testing positive for the virus.

"The Prime Minister thanks NHS staff for all their incredible hard work and urges the public to continue to follow the government's advice to stay at home, protect the NHS and save lives," said a spokesperson.

 Johnson's pregnant fiancée Carrie Symonds is also showing symptoms, and is self-isolating in her London flat.

"Don't let these figures become nameless statistics."An Australian politician's plea.

Labor MP Ged Kearney lost her father-in-law to coronavirus over the weekend and has written an impassioned plea on Facebook, urging her fellow Australians not to become complacent.

"Today I read in the news that Australia has recorded its 30th death from coronavirus. ‘Oh’ you might say, ‘30 is ok compared to other countries’ or you might say ‘30 is getting up there’ or you might just look at it see a number and not think much at all, because you are just going about your daily isolation activities," she wrote on Saturday.

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"But please, don’t let these figures just become nameless statistics to you.

"You see that 30th person was Mike, my father in law. My partner Leigh’s much loved and loving father. He was 82 years old, and had done his best to isolate. In fact I believe he only went outside a couple of times in the whole month to shop."

Ged says they, in fact, teased Mike for "panic buying" when he went out and bought 5kg of rice, 10 cans of chickpeas and 10 cans of tomatoes.

He got sick suddenly and died seven days later.

"Now his Canberra family is in isolation and Wendy, nearly 80, must grieve on her own, in their house alone, away from hugs and kisses and tears and drinks and friends and family," she wrote.

60 Minutes reports 'vital supplies sent to China'.

An anonymous witness who worked at a Chinese owned property development company in Sydney has told 60 Minutes he saw tonnes of gloves, masks, gowns and sanitiser being packaged up to be sent to China.

The man says he witnessed the preparation in January and February of this year telling his interviewer Liz Hayes: "Meeting rooms, lunch rooms and the boardroom, starting to be filled with different types of items getting unpackaged and repackaged and labelled."

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"It definitely rose my suspicion. The concern to me is if all these medical items leave the country, what's left for us?" he told the show.

Employees were reportedly being asked to go to shops and pharmacies to collect the items, and apparently this practice was being repeated across the world in different companies.

It's estimated China amassed 2.4 billion pieces of protective equipment and more than two billion masks.

The Federal Health Minister appeared on 60 Minutes, and announced that Australian healthcare workers will have their dwindling supplies replaced in days.

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Greg Hunt told the show 30 million face masks were on the way.

Greg-Hunt
Greg Hunt told 60 Minutes 30 million masks would be available to Australian healthcare workers within days. Image: Nine.

"There is more to come, including significant amount of gloves, gowns, goggles," he added. "These are critical steps to protect our healthcare workers, because we don't want to see here what we've seen in some overseas countries."

He also spoke of the government's plans to produce protective equipment on Australian shores, calculating that we'd produce up to 200 million masks here by the end of 2020.

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Shane Fitzsimmons given vital role.

He was the face of the summer's bushfire disaster, and now NSW RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons will take on the role of State Emergency Recovery Controller for Resilience NSW from May 1.

Shane Fitzsimmons and firies
Shane Fitzsimmons and some firefighters during the NSW bushfires. Image: Twitter.

He'll be responsible for coordinating recovery efforts and uniting responders and support agencies to help those impacted in disasters get back on their feet, reports the Daily Telegraph.

He has been working with government officials to develop our first response to the coronavirus pandemic, and has pledged that bushfire victims won't be forgotten as he takes on his new role.

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US bracing for the 'hardest week of their lives'.

Americans are being told to brace for the "saddest and hardest week of their lives".

Jerome Adams, the US surgeon general told Fox News: "It’s tragically fitting that we’re talking at the beginning of Holy Week because this is going to be the hardest and the saddest week of most Americans’ lives," comparing the virus' impact to that of Pearl Harbour or 9/11.

More than 30,000 Americans have tested positive and 8,500 have died.

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Virus numbers slow in Italy and Spain.

Italy has registered its lowest day-to-day increase in deaths in more than two weeks - 525 people.

The pace of infection also seemed to be slowing. The country recorded 4316 new cases on Sunday. Earlier in the outbreak, daily increases topped 6000.

Amazingly, a 103-year-old woman has survived the virus in a nursing home west of Milan.

Confirmed infections fell in Spain too, and new deaths declined for the third straight day, dropping to 674 - the first time daily deaths have fallen below 800 in the past week.

"We are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel," Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said.

— With AAP. 

Feature Image: The Royal Family/Getty.

If you are sick and believe you have symptoms of COVID-19, call your GP ahead of time to book an appointment. Or call the national Coronavirus Health Information Line for advice on 1800 020 080. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 000.

To keep up to date with the latest information, please visit the Department of Health website.


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