NSW police fine 600 people on first day of Covid crackdown blitz

Officers across the state also conducted 3,800 welfare checks to see if people were following stay-at-home orders

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New South Wales police issued nearly 600 infringement notices to people flouting tough new health orders on the first day of a three-week crackdown designed to get the state's escalating Covid crisis under control.

The deputy commissioner, Mal Lanyon, said some people were still not complying even after a 5km travel rule came into effect for greater Sydney and the state reported a record 478 new local Covid-19 cases and eight deaths on Monday - the state's worst day of the pandemic.