Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young says things could change "really quickly", as NSW and Victoria report new community cases, and Qantas adds an extra Queensland-bound flight to meet demand.

Storms have swept through western Victoria causing widespread power outages, with Geelong among the hardest hit areas.

Henry Jennings, 21, who had just moved in with friends after finishing the third year of a business degree, expressed joy to his parents at being an "adult now".

Rescuers were called to the Maroochy River about 5pm on New Year's Day after the child was last seen swimming in the area.

Jade and Jesse Rowe's daughter, Ella, was the first baby born in Queensland's Metro South hospitals in 2021.

People living in shack communities in the Royal National Park, Sydney.

There was chaos on the NSW-Victoria border on New Year's Eve after the Andrews government announced it would shut the border.

NSW Health is relying on genomic testing to reveal any link between new western Sydney cases and the Avalon COVID-19 cluster.

It's a decision that many would-be holidaymakers are faced with: should they go away amid a tightening of restrictions or hang around and play tourist in their hometown?

Drivers crossing into Victoria on Friday afternoon reported wait times of about an hour, but warned lengthy delays were likely late this evening.

A look at 2020 New Year's Eve celebrations in a year like no other.

This map shows which Victorian postcodes are currently home to active coronavirus cases.

Long queues have formed at testing sites around Melbourne as the number of positive cases linked to a Thai restaurant in Black Rock increased to 10 on Friday.

Dyllan Jake Shipp, 25, landed at Perth Airport from Dubai on Boxing Day after receiving an exemption to return home to Australia after working overseas.

A week in photos from the award winning Sydney Morning Herald and Financial Review photographers.

As Sydney's coronavirus outbreak extends into its third week it is evident there is no quick fix in sight.

The opposition leader has questioned the state government's COVID-19 testing capacity as Victorian arrivals before December 31 are told to get a test on day 11 after entering WA and not straight away.

New Years Day in Sydney

“With a vaccine, you don’t rush to failure, that would be very dangerous to Australians,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said. Those who suggested otherwise were “naive”.

As the outbreaks in NSW and Victoria grow, other states and territories are reviewing their border arrangements. Here is the current state of play.

The drone was gone: stuck in a tree or lying in someone’s backyard, just under a bathroom window where it had been auto-hovering in camera-record mode.

Police cited concerns about fatigue and alcohol as they advised Victorian drivers rushing to return from NSW not to risk injury or jail in a bid to make it to the border before midnight.

As state and territory leaders strut their new border-rule moves, it's important that we limit movement and direct any vaccine rollout to making our external border as strong as possible.

The alleged incident occurred at a Surfers Paradise holiday resort on New Years Eve night.

Health authorities want Auburn, Berala, Greystanes and Lidcombe residents in Sydney's west to seek immediate testing if they display the mildest of symptoms. Meanwhile, the NSW Premier is preparing to relax the northern beaches restrictions.

A 25-year-old coast man handed himself into police on Friday morning after the incident which left another man, 21, dead in the early hours of the new year.

The Olympic swimmer, based in Brisbane, shared her two-year struggle with her followers on Instagram.

Police say the 20-year-old had been in waist-deep water, lit with headlights near a camp ground along the Gympie region river, when his friends noticed he was gone.

Most West Australians chose to farewell 2020 at home instead of hitting the clubs.

Jade Warry leaves behind a fiance and six children.

Spending New Year’s Eve stuck in a queue on a remote mountainous highway was a very fitting end to 2020.

End-of-year celebrations take a toll but Queensland police are generally pleased with the behaviour of crowds in the entertainment precincts.

Police see "incredible situations" where parents are wearing seatbelts but their children are unrestrained.

We're in Sydney. It would be easier to get back home to Melbourne if we were in London.

The founder of the Bin Isolation Outing Facebook page has made the decision to close the group, leaving it behind in 2020.

West Australian passengers have been sent into a frenzy trying to re-enter the state from Victoria.

The appendix continues to be troublesome.

When it comes to international trade, Australia seems to prefer the opacity of China to the robust, flawed democracy of India.

From Sydney and Melbourne to Beijing and St Peter's Square, it was a New Year's Eve like no other. Only in New Zealand did December 31 appear to go to plan.

NSW recorded 18 local COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, including six from a new Croydon cluster, as Victoria's two-month streak of zero local cases ended with three new infections.

Sydney New Years Eve fireworks, without the crowds.

Lessons learnt from encouraging the use of condoms and lifejackets could be used to increase mask wearing.

There was still colour and music and champagne as Sydney's traditional fireworks spectacular lit up the city's skyline.

This was the way 2020 ended in Melbourne: not with a bang but a whimper.

The state government wants to put a prison at Camellia in Sydney's south, but not a Metro stop. It's enough to make Johhny Cash weep.

Christensen represents the dark side of the Morrison government and his latest Facebook post is an anti-Semitic disgrace that cannot be ignored.

Powerhouse temporary agreement, bridge at The Spit, and trying conditions in Sydney.

Trivia and word buffs: test your knowledge with today's superquiz and Target.

The trauma of last year’s fire season will not be forgotten quickly, with the pain lingering even as rebuilding takes place.

Australia as a modern nation may be relatively young, but our country’s story is ancient, as are the stories of the many First Nations peoples whose stewardship we rightly acknowledge and respect.