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ACT records three additional Covid cases as it begins a snap lockdown

The ACT has recorded three new cases of Covid-19 just hours after the first case in months emerged.

Chief Health Officer Kerryn Coleman told ABC Radio Canberra on Thursday afternoon three close contacts of the first case have now tested positive.

"I can report very hot off the press that we knew of nine really close contacts, so these were people who had prolonged and repeated exposure to our case," she said.

"We know that three of those have given us additional positive cases, the other six have returned negative tests at this point in time."

Parliament House, from Mount Ainslie, in Canberra, Australia.
Three more cases of Covid-19 have emerged in Canberra. Source: Getty Images (file pic)

The ACT went into lockdown on Thursday at 5pm.

The decision to lockdown came after a man in his 20s living in Gungahlin, was infectious in the community for an "extensive" amount of time and the source remains unknown.

Covid-19 has also been detected in wastewater plants "around the ACT".

Chief Minister Andrew Barr told reporters it is the "most serious public health risks" residents have faced in 2021.

"Really, since the beginning of the pandemic. It is why we are introducing a strict lockdown in response," he said.

It means as of 5pm Thursday, Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra are all in lockdown.

Parliament House will remain open for MPs and senators who stay in Canberra ahead of the next sitting fortnight scheduled for August 23.

Both houses are rising to coincide with the imposition of local restrictions and the federal government is helping arrange flights for parliamentarians who want to go home.

People cue in long lines outside a walk-in COVID19 testing clinic in Weston Creek, Canberra.
People wait outside a Covid-19 testing clinic in Weston Creek on Thursday. Source: AAP

NSW has told ACT residents to stay away and will impose stay-at-home orders on anyone who was in Canberra since August 5.

The Northern Territory has declared the city a hotspot. Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia's borders were already shut to Canberra.

It's thought the man has the Delta strain currently traversing Australia's eastern seaboard and stretching into western NSW.

He was out and about between Sunday and Wednesday, including at a nightclub, then a church, the Canberra Outlet Centre as well as various other shops and venues.

The man is not believed to be vaccinated because of his age.

More to come.

with AAP

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