This was published 6 years ago

As the day unfolded: NSW residents set for first weekend of relaxed restrictions as global COVID-19 deaths top 300,000, Australian death toll stands at 98

If you suspect you or a family member has coronavirus you should call (not visit) your GP or ring the national Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.

Laura Chung, Matt Bungard and Sally Rawsthorne

Updated May 16, 2020 — 9:29pm,first published May 16, 2020 — 12:00am

Summary

The global death toll from coronavirus has passed 308,000. There are more than 4.5 million known cases of infection but more than 1.65 million people have recovered, according to the Johns Hopkins University tally
The total number of cases in Australia has passed 7000. There have been 7037 cases and 98 deaths, with roughly 15 new cases recorded each day this week
Around the world, the race is on to find a vaccine for the potentially deadly COVID-19 and Australian researchers are hard at work investigating drugs and conducting trials
Australia remains free of PIMS-TS but well placed to deal with the new inflammatory illness in children linked to COVID-19, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Professor Michael Kidd said on Saturday

9.29pm on May 16, 2020

Form guide refresher to the NRL

By Phil Lutton

Remember the good old days of rugby league when the most pressing concerns were whether Latrell Mitchell was any good at playing fullback or if Kotoni Staggs might be an Origin bolter for the Blues?

That was only in March, even if pre-coronavirus lockdown time feel like a few lifetimes ago. But with rugby league about to return, it's time for a refresher course on how your team looked in the opening rounds and what it may mean for the remaining 18 matches and beyond.

Melbourne Storm train at Albury earlier this weekAAP

In reverse ladder order, we present for your perusal the two-game form guide for the competition's resumption and the most immediate challenges for your club.

8.35pm on May 16, 2020

Woman allegedly hit with bottle after telling man to stand back

A Western Sydney man will face court on Sunday after allegedly hitting a woman who asked him to step back in a supermarket with a bottle, then allegedly procured a meat cleaver when police detained him.

The 59-year-old woman was buying groceries at Miller Central in Sydney's south west on Friday morning, police say, "when a man stood closely behind her and she asked him to take a step back."
In response, the man allegedly hit her in the head with a bottle.

It did not break and she was treated by paramedics.

When officers approached the man in Green Valley the next day, he allegedly produced a meat cleaver.

He was Tasered and arrested, then taken to Liverpool Hospital as a precaution.

The man was charged on Saturday night with assault occasioning actual bodily harm, using an offensive weapon to prevent lawful detention, two counts of assault police and having custody of a knife in a public place.

He was refused police bail to appear in Parramatta Bail Court on Sunday.

8.17pm on May 16, 2020

Calgary Zoo to return pandas to China due to bamboo shortage

CALGARY: The Calgary Zoo will be returning two giant pandas on loan from China because a scarcity of flights due to COVID-19 has caused problems with getting enough fresh and tasty bamboo to feed them.

Er Shun and Da Mao arrived in Calgary in 2018 after spending five years at the Toronto Zoo and were to remain in the Alberta city until 2023.

The zoo's president, Clement Lanthier, said Thursday the facility spent months trying to overcome transportation barriers in acquiring fresh bamboo and decided it's best for the animals to be in China, where their main food source is abundant. Bamboo is rare in Canada and they prefer only certain kinds.

"They are picky," Mr Lanthier said.

7.07pm on May 16, 2020

One PIN issued in NSW on Friday

NSW Police have issued their daily update of breaches of the public health orders, with just one person being fined $1000 in the past 24 hours.

The unlucky character was a 19-year-old man in Western Sydney, police say.

"Traffic and Highway Patrol officers were patrolling Emu Plains when they stopped and spoke to a 19-year-old man on Mitchell’s Pass. The man could not provide a reasonable excuse for leaving home and was issued a $1000 PIN," said a media release.

7.04pm on May 16, 2020

Italy turns to undocumented immigrants to save its harvest

With its economy crashing from the fallout of coronavirus pandemic, Italy is turning to an unlikely saviour to rescue its harvests of fresh food: illegal immigrants.

Despite the rise in anti-immigrant sentiment in recent years, Agriculture Minister Teresa Bellanova successfully shepherded through a controversial plan: to give six-month work permits to hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants from Africa and eastern Europe and let them help with harvests.

An undocumented worker holds her baby as she walks around the migrant neighbourhood in Castel Volturno, near Naples AP

Read the details of the plan here.

6.36pm on May 16, 2020

Itchy feet? How about Iceland?

Feeling the urge to jet set? Well, if you can get to Iceland, you can go to Iceland.

The tiny Scandinavian island plans to allow tourists to return from June 15, provided they either submit to a coronavirus test or a two-week quarantine period.

Bloomberg

6.24pm on May 16, 2020

Could a vaccine come from Australia?

By Amanda Hooton

Around the world, the race is on to find a vaccine for the potentially deadly COVID-19 and Australian researchers are hard at work investigating drugs and conducting trials.

As Ian Frazer, the clinical immunology professor who developed the HPV vaccination says, "It very well could be Australians who beat this thing."

Renowned Australian scientist, HPV vaccine co-creator Ian Frazer.Paul Harris

"We have very talented people. We have the immunologists, the virologists, the protein chemists and cell biologists."

5.59pm on May 16, 2020

Federal government under more pressure to provide for international students

By Anna Patty

The Federal Government is under renewed pressure to support jobless international students after NSW became the final state to announce a hardship funding package.

The NSW government announced on Friday night that it would provide $20 million to fund temporary crisis accommodation for stranded international students.

Turbans 4 Australia pack hundreds of hampers in local halls in Harris Park and Liverpool each weekend for international students who have found themselves jobless during the COVID-19 pandemic. Peter Rae

The package includes temporary housing for students in genuine need. It will be delivered through approved student accommodation or homestay providers.

Phil Honeywood, chief executive of the International Education Association of Australia said the long-awaited state government funding "while very late is a welcome start".

5.36pm on May 16, 2020

Sydney awakens from its slumber

By Laura Chung

As we move into the second night of eased coronavirus restrictions and the return of some cafes, restaurants and bars, check out what happened across Sydney on Friday night here.

The Rio Bar in Summer Hill almost back to normal with restrictions softened and some businesses being allowed to trade with some limits.Steven Siewert

5.27pm on May 16, 2020

Hospital bed that converts to coffin invented

Well. In developing a solution to both the shortage of hospital beds and the safe management of corpses, a Colombian company have come up with a hospital bed that converts into a coffin.

The company's manager, Rodolfo Gomez, pointed out that the bed is biodegradable, costs about $AU198 - three times less than a normal one, and meets the requirements of comfort and functionality.

The biodegradable hospital bed can convert into a coffin, should the need ariseAP

"We developed it because of the situation caused by COVID-19 in the world because we realised that there was a lack of hospital beds," Mr Gomez said.