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South Australia’s COVID cases jump to 3707, two more deaths

South Australia has posted a record 3707 COVID-19 cases and two more fatalities, taking the state's death toll since the start of the pandemic to 10.

South Australia has posted a record 3707 COVID-19 cases and two more fatalities, taking the state's death toll since the start of the pandemic to 10. Photo: AAP

Two more people have died with COVID-19 in South Australia as the state reported another daily record for infections and grappled with two regional outbreaks.

After a dip in new cases on Thursday, the number surged again on Friday to 3707.

Premier Steven Marshall said a woman in her 60s and another person in their 90s had also died taking the state’s toll since the start of the pandemic to 10.

The premier said 144 people were in hospital – a rise from 123 – with 16 of those in intensive care and one on ventilation.

He said while the number of new infections was not escalating at the same rate as some other states, officials remained concerned about the spread of the Omicron variant.

The latest genomic testing of people in hospital had indicated up to 93 per cent of cases in SA were the new strain.

SA Health has sent response teams to the state’s Indigenous APY lands in the state’s north and to Naracoorte in the southeast to help deal with regional outbreaks.

At Naracoorte, more than 100 workers at a local abattoir have become sick with more coronavirus cases detected at nearby Robe.

While on the APY lands two people had tested positive.

They have been evacuated to Adelaide along with their close contacts with wider testing to be conducted across the region.

Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier said while more data and information was still being plugged into the latest modelling, SA was yet to reach the peak of infections in the current surge.

“We are definitely not at our peak now. We’re expecting a peak towards the end of January,” she said.

“But we’re trying to keep cases as low as possible.”

-AAP

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