COVID cases in the ACT have jumped, with 1226 new infections recorded in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday.
It is only the second time since January 19 that cases have breached the 1000 mark. There were 1053 on March 2.
The numbers for Tuesday are well up on the 786 new infections reported the day before.
There were 39 people in hospital to 8pm Tuesday. Four of them are in intensive care and none under ventilation. A day earlier, there were 40 in hospital, with four in intensive care.
The new infections were made up of 536 PCR tests and 690 rapid tests.
ACT Health also reported on Tuesday that a woman in her 90s died with COVID-19. A total of 38 people have now died with COVID-19 in the territory.
The total number of cases since the pandemic began over two years ago is at 61,857.
The new cases reported on Wednesday brought the total number of active cases in the ACT to 4339, up from the 3896 reported on Tuesday.
Vaccination rates continue to increase
Second-dose vaccination bookings have opened for children aged five to 11. Second jabs are available for children eight weeks after they have had their first dose.
The total number of people over five who are double vaccinated now comes in at 94.9 per cent.
A total of 70.8 per cent of people have received their booster, and 79.3 per cent of children aged five to 11 are vaccinated with a single dose.
Remote learning for ACT schools not ruled out
The ACT government has not ruled out a return to remote learning as high case numbers and staff shortages continue to plague the territory's schools.
It comes after two Queanbeyan public high schools moved to bring back some home learning amid ongoing COVID-19 infections and staff shortages that forced cuts to classes.
There were 1118 cases of COVID-19 reported across 125 Canberra schools - which includes private and public campuses - in the week ending on Sunday, which was down slightly on the number of cases in the previous week.
Chief Minister Andrew Barr said on Tuesday that all public health settings were under review following a national cabinet decision to explore dropping close-contact quarantine, and the territory would take a cautious approach.
Meanwhile, a new and more contagious sub-lineage strain of Omicron is expected to become the dominant strain in the territory, health authorities have warned.
The strain is likely to fuel a rise in case numbers within Canberra over the coming weeks but hospitalisations are expected to remain steady.
Early evidence has indicated the strain, named the BA.2 sub-lineage, was not more severe than earlier variants.
- For available appointments, call the ACT COVID-19 vaccination booking line on (02) 5124 7700.
Around Australia
NSW has recorded 30,402 new COVID-19 cases and five deaths in the 24 hours to 4pm.
The case figures have skyrocketed due to a data processing issue, says NSW Health.
The issue saw about 10,000 positive RATs registered between Sunday, March 13, and Monday, March 14, reported in Wednesday's numbers, NSW Health said.
There were 1016 COVID-19 patients are in hospital with the virus, with 36 in ICU.
Of the new cases, 22,748 came from positive rapid antigen tests while 7654 came from PCR testing.
Victoria has reported eight deaths and 9426 new cases, the highest daily infection total in five weeks. The state had a total of 201 hospitalisations, including 24 in ICU and six on ventilators
