Source: 9news
Melbourne’s lockdown has been extended for another week as concerns grow over the transmissibility of the Delta strain.
Premier Daniel Andrews said there were a number of “mystery cases” among the 20 new cases recorded in Victoria in the last 24 hours, with only 15 linked to current outbreaks.
Defences to stop the spread of the New South Wales outbreak – which recorded 344 new cases today – will also be strengthened, with the Victoria-NSW border bubble now subject to a permit system.
“If this virus can get from Sydney to Byron Bay, to Dubbo, to Armidale, to Tamworth, then only a fool would think that it couldn’t get to Albury,” Mr Andrews said.
People will need to apply for a permit if they want to use the bubble from 1pm tomorrow.
Mr Andrews said the permit system would not be enforced until 6pm Friday.
He said it was important for Victoria to know who was moving across the border in order to track the virus spread, but that changes were “relatively straightforward”.
Melbourne’s current lockdown is now set to end at 11.59pm next Thursday.
There were 41,571 tests undertaken in Victoria over the last 24 hours.
Person allegedly impersonated officer conducting home visit
COVID-19 Response Commander Jeroen Weimar has confirmed an investigation is underway into somebody who allegedly impersonated an authorised officer to attempt to enter somebody’s home. Mr Weimar said the incident must have been “distressing” for the resident. He said legitimate authorised officers conducting home visits would always be in uniform, have appropriate ID, and would never seek entry into the residence.
Mystery cases under microscope
Mr Weimar has said he is “confident” the state’s mystery cases would be linked to existing transmission chains in coming days. The mystery cases include three members of a Melton family, comprising two parents and a child. “The child was already in isolation as a contact of another primary close contact,” Mr Weimar said. “But we do not currently have a direct link.” The other mystery cases include a Year One student at St Michael’s Primary School in Melbourne, and his father, a healthcare worker.
The student was not infectious while at school, but staff and students are being tested out of caution, Mr Weimar said. Mr Andrews warned that people on the fringes of metropolitan Melbourne are still in danger of COVID-19, despite no current local cases in the area. “That is the nature of mystery cases,” Mr Andrews said. He said that in Victoria’s long lockdown last year, people from the same areas had pushed for their communities to be classified as part of the regions rather than Melbourne to escape lockdown. “Then, weeks later, there were dozens of cases there,” Mr Andrews said.
Restrictions could lift early in Victoria
Mr Andrews has said it is possible restrictions could be lifted early, but warned Victoria to “brace” for a full extra week in lockdown. “We don’t want these restrictions in place any longer than they need to be,” he said. He said if new cases were all found to be in isolation, and mystery cases were linked to existing outbreaks, it was “possible” conditions could change, depending on health advice.
People ‘turned away’ from testing sites
Mr Andrews has defended the long delays at COVID-19 testing sites after people were reportedly turned away. He said that extra resources were being targeted at sites in Melbourne’s west. “We don’t have an infinite supply of highly-trained staff,” he said. “There are always going to be delays.” Mr Andrews said the long waits were a “good sign”, as it showed many people were responding to the call for testing.
The furloughing of 114 staff from Western Health has had no impact on vaccination or testing in Melbourne, Mr Weimar said. The staff are all in isolation after having been involved in Tier One exposure sites. Some are parents of students linked to the ongoing outbreak. Mr Weimar said there were “very strong operational plans” in place to ensure there would be no disruption.
‘Millions’ of Victorians keen for vaccine, Premier says
Mr Andrews has played down the problem of “vaccine hesitancy”, saying there had been a great response to the state’s vaccination program. He said there had been thousands of appointments made after opening AstraZeneca eligibility to 18-39-year-olds. “I think the vaccine hesitancy conversation is kind of a conversation amongst ourselves,” he said. “I think there are many millions of Victorians who want to get vaccinated, and want to get vaccinated like, yesterday.” The Victorian government has prioritised the vaccination of healthcare workers, but not teachers, despite multiple infections in schools during the current outbreak. But Mr Andrews has ruled out prioritising teachers.
He said “thousands” of groups in the community could make a “compelling argument” for a vaccine priority status. Mr Andrews said it was a matter of vaccine supply, rather than the worthiness of different groups. “I would make the point that 60-plus per cent of teachers are eligible for the vaccine, by virtue of age,” he said.
Repeated yelling interrupts Premier’s update
Mr Andrews has addressed an ongoing interruption at his press conference after a man was heard repeatedly shouting his name. The Premier said he was unsure what the nature of the incident was or if it was COVID-19 related. “It might be somebody who’s wanted to speak to me for some time, I don’t know,” he said.
He said in general, anger and frustration were not effective weapons against the virus, and urged people, whether they supported him or not, to get tested and vaccinated.
