A NSW couple allegedly led police on a 200km car chase from Goulburn to Parramatta, which involved multiple gun-point carjackings and several crashes.

About 4.10pm yesterday, police were conducting routine patrols on the Federal Highway south of Goulburn and almost 200km south-west of Sydney when they noticed a Toyota Hilux allegedly speeding.

Police discovered that the ute had allegedly been reported stolen from Molong, north west of Orange and 240km away, the previous day.

READ MORE: Pilot killed in small aircraft crash in Victoria

A chase was initiated after the driver Aiden Osborne, 33, allegedly ignored police's request to pull over.

Officers attempted to continuing chasing the car, even deploying road spikes near Marulan, outside Goulburn, which punctured a front tyre of the ute.

Officers then stopped the chase over safety fears.

The man allegedly then continued on to Brayton Road, Marulan, where he, and 31-year old Krystal May Carr allegedly threatened a couple and their baby at gunpoint before stealing their Ford Territory.

They allegedly drove that vehicle back onto the Hume Highway, heading north.

They crashed it into a guard rail at a service station at Sutton Forest in the Southern Highlands.

The couple then allegedly approached a black Ford Focus at the same service station, threatening a woman and two teenage girls at gunpoint before stealing the car.

READ MORE: Child among three dead in NSW South Coast car crash

At about 4.30pm, that vehicle was seen on the Hume Highway at Yanderra, north of Mittagong, where officers again initiated another pursuit.

It was later also halted due to safety concerns.

At 5.45pm, the car was being driven along Narellan Road, Mount Annan, where it was involved in a number of crashes with three other cars before fleeing the scene.

About 6.45pm, PolAir tracked the car to Irving Street, Parramatta, where officers from Parramatta Police Area Command, the Public Order and Riot Squad and the Dog Unit finally arrested the pair, who were taken to Parramatta Police Station.

Officers also recovered a sawn off gun.

The couple, from Dubbo, have been charged with multiple offences.

They have been refused bail and are due to appear in court in May.

The Sydney Opera House has been evacuated after a gas leak was detected.

Emergency services were called at about 2pm today with multiple sections of the iconic building cleared as a precaution.

More than 15 firefighters remain at the scene trying to determine the source of the leak, while a number of people have been ordered to leave the area.

READ MORE: Couple allegedly lead police on 200km chase across NSW, involving multiple car jackings and crashes

Initial reports suggested the leak occurred inside the carpark.

However, authorities are now working to determine if it may have started elsewhere.

Police are also at the scene while firefighters work to secure the area.

"We were called down this afternoon after reports about the smell of gas," a spokesman for Fire and Rescue NSW told 9News.

"On arrival crews discovered that there were elevated levels of gas in parts of the building.

READ MORE: Teenager stabbed in the buttocks during Sydney brawl

"We are currently waiting on the arrival of the gas company; we do have hazardous material crews who are going around monitoring the scene to ensure the gas stays at safe levels."

The news comes after a number of people suffered injuries at a public swimming pool yesterday following a chlorine leak in Victoria.

More to follow

Fashion icon Carla Zampatti will be honoured with a state funeral, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has announced.

In a statement released this morning, Ms Berejiklian described Ms Zampatti as "generous" and "inspiring".

"The family of Australian fashion icon Carla Zampatti AC has accepted the NSW Government's offer of a State Funeral," Ms Berejiklian said.

READ MORE: Pilot killed in small aircraft crash in Victoria

"Carla was talented, generous and inspiring. A true trailblazer in every respect.

"On behalf of the people of NSW, I extend my deepest condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Carla."

https://twitter.com/GladysB/status/1378166339601326081?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Details of the funeral will be provided in the coming days.

Ms Zampatti passed away yesterday, aged 78, following a week in hospital after a fall at the opera.

READ MORE: Easter weather: Warm and sunny day around every state except one

She was attending the gala premiere of La Traviata on Sydney Harbour last Friday, March 27, when she fell on the bottom two steps of a staircase and hit her head.

Zampatti is survived by her three children – Alexander Schuman, Bianca Spender who is also a fashion designer, and Allegra Spender – and nine grandchildren

A condolence page has been set up, with tributes already flowing in from friends, fans and clients.

Pressure is mounting on the Federal Government to drastically ramp up the rate of the coronavirus vaccine rollout.

The Sydney Showground is set to be turned into a mass vaccination centre, one of 36 new hubs to be created across NSW.

"I had a very constructive conversation with my NSW counterpart earlier today – we welcome all of the states and territories setting up large vaccination centres. That has always been part of the plan," Health Minister Greg Hunt said.

In the US, mass vaccination centres have seen inoculation rates average around three million a day. Yesterday, a record with four million.

"The total number of vaccines administered by NSW Health is now 126,494," NSW Health's Dr Christine Selvey said.

States across Australia are itching to increase their rates but it all depends on the supply of the locally-produced AstraZeneca vaccine.

"Within that supply, we are able to make sure the states and territories have, over 30 weeks, a consistent large volume (of vaccines)," Mr Hunt said.

The rollout of phase 1a for aged care residents is well behind with 111,000 vaccinated so far and another 80,000 to go.

The Federal Government is scrambling asking for more providers to deliver vaccines.

"Only 14 per cent of aged care facilities and the residents within them have received the full vaccination," Shadow Health Minister Mark Butler said.

"Only 14 per cent of a sector that was supposed to be finished by last week."

Australia has now delivered nearly 850,000 vaccines. Mr Hunt said everyone should have had a first dose by October, but it means some won't receive their second dose until January next year.

Currently 1500 GP clinics are playing their part in the vaccine rollout, but that number is expected to double by the end of next week.

"We welcome that because we have GPs and then from the state allocation we also have that large vaccination clinic option," Mr Hunt said.

As COVID-19 vaccines are rolled out around the world, a top doctor is warning of a new virus strain that is killing the young in their thousands.

Brazil is swamped by new virus cases, with a warning to Australia that this variant is far more dangerous than anything seen before.

The new variant has overwhelmed the country to the point gravediggers are exhuming old tombs to make space for the more than 300,000 dead.

Watch the full interview at the top of the page

"The entire country has no ICU beds left. The deaths are soaring exponentially … like through the roof," Dr Eric Liang Feigl-Ding, an epidemiologist from Harvard, told 9News.

Dr Feigl-Ding was one of the first epidemiologists to raise the alarm that COVID-19 was heading towards a pandemic in January 2020.

READ MORE: Italy enters three-day Easter lockdown amid vaccination snags

The Brazilian variant, known as P1, has been described as like a viral match to kerosene. It's up to 150 per cent more infectious than regular COVID-19 and attacks people in their 30s, 40s and 50s.

"P1 could be the variant that is the big troublemaker for the next surge," he said.

READ MORE: Explainer: What we know about AstraZeneca blood clot reports

In just one month, Brazil's daily deaths have surged well past 3000 a day.

The variant has already made its way to Canada, to a Whistler ski resort that's popular with Australians, while 16 players in the professional ice hockey team the Vancouver Canucks have caught it too.

"There are cases here with the Canucks where the individuals here are very ill," Canadian sportscaster Darren Dreger said.

Dr Feigl-Ding, who is a Senior Fellow at the Federation of American Scientists, said it should serve as a warning to many, particularly Australians.

READ MORE: WHO criticises Europe's 'unacceptably slow' vaccination program

"If professional, young athletes can get very sick from this virus … so can you," he said.

"Australia has done pretty well so far … but we have commended countries that did well early in the pandemic … but we saw later on disaster hit."

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