A unvaccinated man in his 20s has died in the South-West Sydney hotspot after contracting COVID-19.
It marks one of the latest deaths as Sydney continues to grapple with the Delta strain, with NSW recording 233 new cases in the community overnight.
“Very sadly, a male in his 20s passed away at home from COVID in south-western Sydney overnight,” NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said at the daily coronavirus press conference on Wednesday morning.
“Obviously our deepest condolences to his family and loved ones. But it demonstrates again how this disease is lethal, how it affects people of all ages.
“Unfortunately the gentleman wasn’t vaccinated, he hadn’t had any dose of the vaccine. As we understand the death happened quite suddenly.”
NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said that the man had been isolating at home for almost two weeks and was being cared for daily by nursing staff when he “suddenly deteriorated’ on day 13.
She added that the man’s symptoms were relatively mild until that point, highlighting the need for anyone with even slight symptoms to get tested as soon as possible.
The man had been living with one other person, who is now also receiving treatment.
“That person also had COVID and that person has been hospitalised and offered all care,” Dr Chant added.
“You can imagine how traumatic such an event was for them.”
The Detla strain of COVID-19 is the most severe and most transmissible version of the virus yet. Unlike last year, young people are baring the brunt of new cases and are ending up in the emergency room in numbers not seen before.
The man’s passing is the second death over night, along with an Inner West woman in her 80s. She was also unvaccinated.
Just last month, a 38-year-old woman also died after contracting COVID-19. She had tried multiple times to get vaccinated but couldn’t book an appointment.
All adult Aussies (yep, even if those of us under 40) are currently able to get the safe and effective AstraZeneca vaccine through a GP. Talk to a doctor to see if it’s right for you.
Alternatively, you can triple-check to see if you’re eligible for the Pfizer vaccine here.
The best vaccine is the first one you can get, and that’ll be our ticket out of this mess.
