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ABC host scrambles to explain awkward cough during Covid reporting

ABC host Joe O'Brien was forced to address Covid concerns on Thursday morning after coughing during his live reporting on Sydney’s growing Covid cluster.

Mr O'Brien, who lives in Sydney, was transitioning between top stories when he excused himself for clearing his throat with a cough.

After a brief awkward pause, he decided to address his “dodgy voice over the last couple of days”.

“I got a bit sick on the weekend and got my Covid test on Monday morning,” he explained.

“It was a really good system, got the result back on Monday night and it was negative.

ABC's Joe O'Brien coughing during Covid reporting.
ABC host Joe O'Brien was forced to address Covid concerns on Thursday morning after coughing during his live reporting on Sydney’s growing Covid cluster. Source: ABC

“My voice is a bit dodgy but yeah, I think I'm pretty sure I'm fine in terms of not passing anything on to other people at the moment and we're all wearing masks inside in the ABC building now except for presenters,” he said, referencing the state’s move to make masks mandatory inside workplaces on Wednesday.

On Monday the ABC host posted a photo of himself wearing a mask while waiting in line for his Covid test.

“Apologies crew… won’t see you at 9am this morning on ABC News because some mild cold symptoms developed overnight and am getting tested. Let’s beat this Sydney. And… at least it’s Solstice,” he wrote.

NSW records 11 new Covid cases

The state’s outbreak continued to grow on Thursday, with another 11 local cases recorded.

There have now been 48 community cases since Sydney's outbreak began when an unvaccinated limousine driver ferrying air crew tested positive on June 16.

The Bondi cluster stands at 36.

Thursday's official local case total is 18, 13 of which were revealed on Wednesday.

A further six cases identified beyond the 8pm cut off and will be included in Friday's numbers.

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