Release day for Melbourne’s freedom roadmap revealed as man in his 20s dies from Covid

The rapid spread of Covid in these areas has promoted a warning from health authorities. It comes as another V/Line worker tested positive to the virus.

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Premier Daniel Andrews has flagged that Victoria’s highly awaited roadmap out of lockdown will be unveiled on Sunday.

While details remain scarce, Mr Andrews has hinted it would outline how the coming months would unfold.

“It will give people a clear sense of what we’re working towards,” he said.

It comes after a Victorian man in his 20s died from Covid, but authorities reveal they were previously unaware he even had the virus.

The man, from Hume in Melbourne’s north, died at home and his death was one of two announced on Tuesday morning.

A post mortem identified he had Covid but the Department of Health was unaware of him as a case.

It’s not yet known if he had underlying health conditions.

The second fatality announced on Tuesday was a woman in her 80s from Brimbank in Melbourne’s west.

Ninety-one per cent of people in hospital are unvaccinated, eight per cent are partially vaccinated and just one person is fully vaccinated.

The state’s clinics administered 36,615 vaccines on Monday.

Meanwhile, a seventh V/Line worker has tested positive to Covid.

A Department of Transport spokesman confirmed the case on Tuesday afternoon.

About 300 V/Line operational staff have been sent into isolation.

Coaches will continue to replace the majority of V/Line services on Wednesday, with two afternoon peak services added to the Ballarat and Geelong lines.

Commuters are being warned to allow up to an extra 90 minutes for their trip.

Melbourne has the lowest vaccination rate of any municipality in the state. Picture: Nicki Connolly

In total, 158 Covid-infected Victorians are now in hospital with coronavirus.

There are 45 people in intensive care and 23 are on a ventilator.

The majority of Victoria’s active cases are young people, with 563 cases among children under nine, 647 aged between 10 and 19 and 906 aged in their 20s.

In total, 87 per cent of the state’s active cases are younger than 50.

There was a significant jump in mystery cases on Tuesday, up 45 from 271 on Monday.

Only 129 of the latest infections are linked to existing outbreaks.

The state recorded 445 new cases in the past 24 hours.

WHERE LATEST CASES WERE FOUND

• 275 cases have been reported in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, including Hume, Moreland and Whittlesea

• 83 cases were recorded in the western suburbs of Wyndham, Melton, Brimbank and Hobsons Bay

• 20 cases in Melbourne’s southeast in Casey, Greater Dandenong, Port Phillip and Glen Eira

• Three new cases in regional Victoria including on the Surf Coast, Ballarat and Mitchell

POSTCODES OF CONCERN

Ten postcodes are causing concern for Victorian health authorities.

Anyone who lives or works in the following postcodes is being urged to get tested for Covid-19:

• 3064

• 3047

• 3048

• 3061

• 3059

• 3046

• 3060

• 3029

• 3030

• 3025

Health deputy secretary Kate Manson urged “if you work or live or have any association with those suburbs, please come forward and get tested”.

COVID VICTIM’S FAMILY MAKES DESPERATE JAB PLEA

The family of a Melbourne dad who died of COVID-19 on Monday has urged the community to get vaccinated.

Martin ‘Marty’ Blight, 46, died in hospital after contracting the virus at his workplace, Serco call centre in Mill Park.

Mr Blight, a keen fisherman and loving father, was not vaccinated.

His last social media post dated Thursday September 9 read: “Covid sux guys look after yourselves plz do what ever you can to self distance that’s one thing I would say that works.....”

The Australian Services Union released a statement on behalf of Mr Blight’s family encouraging Victorians to get vaccinated.

Read the full story here.

REGIONAL EXPOSURE SITES GROW

Several exposure sites have been listed in regional Victoria on Tuesday afternoon after three new cases were detected outside metropolitan Melbourne.

An Ocean Grove bakery and a Torquay Coles were also listed as a tier two site as the number of sites across the state grows to more than a 1000.

A pizzeria shop and Big W in Ballarat were also visited by a positive case and have been listed as tier two sites.

The exposure sites follow an announcement on Tuesday morning that a positive Covid case had been found on the Surf Coast, Ballarat and Mitchell.

The lockdown in regional Victoria - excluding Shepparton - was lifted less than a week ago.

COVID JAB CERTIFICATE: HOW YOU CAN GET IT

With Australia’s vaccination rates rising there is one thing everyone eyeing freedom will need to get their hands on first: proof of their vaccination.

After you’ve been fully vaccinated you can get an immunisation history statement or Covid-19 digital certificate for free to erase any doubt around your jab record.

However, how you go about getting the golden ticket depends on your circumstances.

Read how to access your jab certificate here.

BOOST TO MENTAL HEALTH FUNDING

Mental health funding will be boosted with an extra $22 million to deliver fast-tracked care to those who need it most during the pandemic, the state government announced on Tuesday.

The lion’s share, $13.3 million, will deliver 20 pop-up community mental health services across Melbourne and regional Victoria with around 90 dedicated clinicians.

Money will also be spent on indigenous mental health and parenting programs for families whose children suffer from anxiety.

Minister for Mental Health, James Merlino, said many Victorians had struggled with mental wellbeing during the pandemic which was exacerbated by a “broken” mental health system.

“Victorians have been really struggling, whether that’s through isolation, whether it’s financial stress, whether it’s illness and indeed loss of life or loss of a loved one via Covid,” Mr Merlino said.

“We’ve started our reform - this a 10 year reform - which began with a $3.8 billon investment in the may budget to fix from the ground up our broken mental health system,” Mr Merlino said.

The funding comes as a boost to the $225 million already spent on mental health during the pandemic.

Professor of youth mental health at Melbourne University and Orygen executive director Patrick McGorry said he welcomed the decision.

“The issues people are raising about hospitals being overwhelmed with Covid cases, that’s our daily life in mental health,” Mr McGorry said.

“It is a stepping stone. It’s a big task ahead. It won’t be a total solution, but it will set the scene for progress next year as the royal commission starts to take root in the community.”

Pop-up clinics would provide important care to those with urgent need, cohealth executive Nicole Bartholomeusz said.

“Investing in community-based mental health services is a sensible investment that helps our health system work more efficiently,” she said.

“It will fast track specialist care for people who need urgent support, while reducing the burden on acute responses such as ambulances and emergency departments.”

PUSH FOR MASS JAB HUB AT MCG

Melbourne has the lowest vaccination rate of any municipality in the state, fuelling calls to turn the MCG into a mass vaccination hub in grand final week.

New data released on Monday shows just 54.2 per cent of those aged over 16 living in the City of Melbourne have received at least one dose and 28.4 per cent are fully vaccinated.

That is despite the area already having 16 GP clinics administering the Pfizer vaccine – more than suburban hot spots, including Hume, Wyndham and Dandenong.

Health Minister Martin Foley said there were two major vaccination hubs – the Royal Exhibition Building and Jeff’s Shed – around the CBD.

“If the commonwealth can provide more vaccines … whether it’s the MCG, Luna Park or anywhere else it could be a fun thing to vaccine around, that’s great,” Health Minister Martin Foley said.

“We’d be strongly supportive of helping get Victorians to participate in that, but our ­priority is to take the vaccines to where people are in the areas of greatest need.”

The state’s Covid response deputy secretary Naomi Bromley on Sunday said the initiative would be a “lovely thing to do”.

She said delivering vaccinations at the MCG – proposed by the Sunday Herald Sun – was ­“certainly one of the options on the table” as the state’s rollout expanded.

Opposition Leader Matthew Guy joined Prime Minister Scott Morrison, federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and a host of footy legends in backing the idea.

“That’s a tremendous idea,” Mr Guy said.

“It is so important to get vaccinated … it’s important that we have a clear and concise message, (and) have ideas like having a grand final jab day at the ’G.”

The state opposition is intensifying its push for family bubbles to be allowed in time for the AFL grand final. It would mean one family – living across several households – would be able to gather outdoors for the match.

“The concept of providing some mental health relief, particularly through family contact, has never been more important,” Mr Guy said.

“I think that would be a good way of giving something back to Victorians.”

When asked about the ­proposal, Mr Foley said: “We’ll be taking the chief health officer’s advice, not the opposition’s advice when it comes to public health matters.”

Former federal Labor leader Bill Shorten on Monday said Victorians wanted “to know there is light at the end of the tunnel”, as the state government finalised work on its road map for reopening.

“We want a plan. We’d like to know some deadlines,” Mr Shorten said, as he particularly focused on the need to get children back to school.

“We’re looking at other states and we want some of that, but we’ve got to make sure we do it safely.”

— Click here to sign the Jab at the G petition.

‘HUGE’ PROTEST TURNOUT EXPECTED

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said an anti-lockdown protest scheduled for Saturday had him “very, very concerned”, with “huge” numbers expected.

It comes after he labelled Victoria “the protesting capital of the world”.

“We’ll be doing everything we can to prevent people attending,” he told 3AW.

Mr Patton did not rule out shutting down the public transport network to prevent rulebreakers from making their way into Melbourne’s CBD.

“It’s something I’m actively exploring,” he said.

“(I’m) trying to understand the consequences of that and whether it’s feasible, but it’s an active consideration at the moment which we’ll determine in the next day or two.”

Mr Patton said he hoped his members would not need to deploy pepper spray or rubber bullets to control the crowd if violence erupts.

“But if necessary, and when appropriate, we will use (them) if that has to be the case,” he said.

Police are bracing for yet another anti-lockdown protest. Picture: David Crosling

“The reality for us is anyone who attends is breaking the law … and if they come there, anyone is liable to be arrested and we would process as many people as we can.”

“I implore, plead, urge with everyone don’t come in. It can’t go ahead.”

It comes as Victoria Police established two commands to enforce Covid-19 restrictions until the end of 2022.

Mr Patton said coronavirus enforcement would remain “the biggest game in town” for the foreseeable future.

“We don’t get to pick and choose what we enforce,” he told 10 News. “There has to be a consequence, so that people who are doing the wrong thing are held to account.”

The force has established two commands to enforce Covid-19 restrictions, such as quarantine arrangements, until the end of 2022. A command is a specialised police unit dedicated to detecting and preventing particular crimes.

Mr Patton said the force’s role in enforcing Covid-19 restrictions hadn’t completely eroded the public’s trust in police, but there had been some effect.

Premier Daniel Andrews is set to reveal the state’s road map out of lockdown. Picture: David Geraghty

CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY ON NOTICE

Victoria’s construction industry has been put on notice, with warnings it could be shut down if compliance did not improve.

The sector will be subjected to a four-week compliance blitz aimed at workers and job sites that are not following strict Covid protocols.

An extra 20,000 Pfizer doses – and unlimited AstraZeneca doses – will be fast-tracked to workers in response to growing outbreaks in the sector such as a Box Hill site where 120 cases emerged.

Industrial Relations Minister Tim Pallas warned the permitted worker status of the sector could be at risk if breaches continued.

“The time for warnings and admonishment is over,” he said.

Infected construction workers live about 20km from where they picked up the virus, compared with about 4km on average for supermarket outbreaks, Mr Pallas said.

Up to 50 teams of authorised workers, and inspectors from WorkSafe and the Victorian Building Authority began compliance checks on Monday. Master Builders Victoria boss Rebecca Casson said the measures had long been requested by industry leaders.

Archer Miller, 12, receives his Pfizer vaccination after the vaccine rollout was expanded. Picture: David Caird

“The building and construction industry is critical to jobs and the economy but it’s just as critical that our industry continues to enforce Covid-safe measures,” Ms Casson said.

It comes as Covid-19 commander Jeroen Weimar warned tearooms were now “probably the most dangerous place” for transmission.

“Tearooms are not a safe place,” he said.

New data shows vaccination rates are still lagging behind the state average in areas hit hardest by Melbourne’s latest outbreak.

In Hume, where there are 1183 cases, only 55 per cent of those over 15 have received at least one dose. The first dose rate is 56.2 per cent in Whittlesea, which has 274 active cases.

The northern and western suburbs will be targeted in a major blitz this month, with the state government opening pop-up vaccination hubs and the federal government bringing online extra GPs and pharmacies after criticism of the lack of vaccination sites.

Statewide, 66.82 per cent of eligible Victorians have now had at least one dose, putting the state on track to hit the 70 per cent mark – at which Daniel Andrews has promised to ease some lockdown rules – as early as Friday.

It came as a political storm erupted between the state and federal governments on Monday, with federal Health Minister Greg Hunt denying claims the Premier was not aware of a Pfizer boost for Victoria.

Mr Andrews on Sunday said he first learnt about the announcement at his daily press conference. But Mr Hunt said he had been working closely with state Health Minister Martin Foley on the vaccination blitz, and Mr Andrews may have had “a desire to divert” from the announcement by creating a “conflict”.

It also emerged on Monday that more than half of those counted as having been vaccinated in Victoria’s rollout to Indigenous people were incorrectly identified as Indigenous.

A week ago, federal data showed almost 48,000 had received at least one dose, but that was revised down to 21,559. It is believed a software issue was to blame.

Originally published as Release day for Melbourne’s freedom roadmap revealed as man in his 20s dies from Covid