Australia battles fresh Omicron outbreak as COVID deaths rise

FILE PHOTO: Customers queue outside a Western Sydney chemist to purchase Rapid Antigen Test kits in the wake of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Sydney, Australia, January 5, 2022. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia reported one of its highest daily death tolls from the novel coronavirus on Thursday while hospital admissions hovered near record levels, as authorities struggle to get ahead of highly contagious Omicron variants.

The BA.4/5 variants are good at evading immune protection from vaccination or prior infection and have been driving a surge of new infections globally.