Australian state bans outdoor exercise, dog-walking

South Australia banned outdoor exercise and dog-walking for six days starting Thursday as part of the Australian state’s plan to contain an outbreak of COVID-19 infections. 

The new restrictions announced on Wednesday permit only one person from each household to leave their home each day and only for essential reasons, Bloomberg Quint reported. 

South Australian Premier Steven Marshall said the rules are designed for the state “to go hard, go early, but get out of it as quickly as we can.”

The “circuit breaker” restrictions shut down schools, universities, cafes and restaurants for the six-day lockdown. Weddings and funerals are also banned, and masks are required. 

The Australian state has documented 34 active cases as of the disease Thursday evening after several people were infected in the state capital Adelaide. 

The Adelaide infections began after a cleaner used at a hotel where people were quarantined was exposed to the virus, according to Bloomberg Quint.

The state premier called the coronavirus strain spreading in the state “nasty” since many of those infected are asymptomatic.

“It’s a real worry, especially because people who become infected are not showing the typical symptoms that we are used to,” he said, according to Bloomberg Quint.

Marshall reported the strain was likely to be transmitted from surfaces, and the incubation period could be as low as 24 hours.