71 new cases, slim hope Victoria’s lockdown will end on time
Health officials have provided some hope of lockdown easing on time despite the spike in daily infections — but one thing needs to happen.
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Health authorities have provided a glimmer of hope that Victoria’s sixth lockdown could be lifted as planned but have declared it will depend on the community’s compliance with the strict restrictions.
Hopes of the lockdown being eased on September 2 are fading fast.
When asked if there was any chance of getting a ring around the outbreak by September 2, Covid-19 commander Jeroen Weimar said he remained hopeful.
“If we continue to work together, we have pulled six, seven outbreaks now in the last eight months, so collectively as a Victorian community we can absolutely do that,” he said.
“We can cap the rising cases and get it down, because if we don’t, we are looking at the other side of the Murray River and that’s what is awaiting us.”
Victoria recorded 71 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, with nearly a quarter of these still under investigation.
Of Monday’s numbers, 49 have been traced to other clusters, while contact tracers are still working to connect remaining 22.
Mr Weimar raised concerns over the spike in mystery cases, which were double those of the day before.
“We also have 22 mystery cases today and it compares to 11 yesterday and 10 the day before — a significant jump,” he said.
“We’re seeing again a spread into suburbs in the Melbourne area, suburbs like Essendon West, Camberwell, Thornbury, Fitzroy North, Maidstone, all the way down to Sorrento.”
Just 16 of the latest cases were in isolation during their infectious period, with Premier Daniel Andrews saying the low figure was “a significant concern”.
He flagged clusters in Shepparton and parts of Melbourne’s inner west, saying they were a “particular challenge”.
Of today’s new cases, 14 are linked to the Shepparton outbreak and 10 are traced back to the Newport cluster.
Another eight have been traced to a childcare centre at Broadmeadows, five to the Royal Melbourne Hospital and 12 are household contacts of existing cases.
The remaining 22 are listed as mystery cases.
Mr Weimar said the childcare centre outbreak appeared to be coming under control.
But he said he remained concerned about loose ends around St Kilda despite no new cases being found in this area.
Twenty-nine Victorians are in hospital with Covid, with nine receiving intensive care.
There were 46,446 test results received over the past 24 hours and 22,191 doses of the vaccine delivered.
There are 52,566 vaccination appointments available at state-run hubs and clinics over the next week, with Mr Andrews revealing an alarming number of vaccine bookings going to waste.
“We have about 10,000 people a day who are either no-shows or cancelling — double what it was a week ago … if you have a vaccine appointment, please honour that appointment,” he said.
“Come forward. As the chief health officer says, the best vaccine is the one that is available
today.
“Getting vaccinated today is better than joining the queue in a fortnight, particularly if you are in that queue with hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of thousands of others.”
TESTING PUSH FOR YOUNG MEN
Health authorities are urging young men in the western suburbs to get tested as the Newport Covid outbreak continues to grow.
More than 350 close contacts are in isolation in the western suburb and its surrounds after the outbreak swelled to 61 active cases, with Mr Weimar appealing to young men who are active in the community.
“I’m particularly appealing to younger men in the Newport, Altona, and Altona North area: If you are active in the community, in your 20s and 30s, if you are connected to the footy club or the gyms … please come forward and get tested,” he said.
“We really are concerned about this ongoing emergence of cases in the Newport area.”
The Covid commander again highlighted the number of schoolchildren falling seriously ill, saying the Delta variant was affecting all age groups.
Nearly a quarter of Victoria’s 44 active cases are children under the age of 10, with 100 aged between 10 and 19.
“We have examples of children collapsing and vomiting at school, that is how ill they are,” Mr Weimar said.
“And then we go to the house and we realise a number of people in the household are positives, very symptomatic.”
A baby is among the Victorians receiving intensive care, along with one person in their 20s, one in their 30s, five in their 40s, and two in their 50s. None of the ICU patients have been vaccinated.
NSW CASES CONTINUE TO RISE
It comes as NSW recorded 818 new locally acquired cases of Covid-19, along with three deaths of people aged in their 80s.
The source of infection for 698 cases is under investigation.
Forty-two cases were infectious in the community, and the isolation status of 714 cases remains under investigation.
Forty-seven cases were in isolation throughout their infectious period and 15 were in isolation for part of their infectious period.
New restrictions came into place at 12.01am with residents in Sydney’s 12 hotspot LGAs limited to one hour of outdoor exercise. A curfew is in place from 9pm to 5am and garden, office, hardware and pet supply stores must close, except for click and collect.
Everyone in NSW must now wear a mask outside their home, and Greater Sydney residents must apply for a permit to enter regional NSW.
PROBE INTO ALLEGED FUNERAL BREACH
Authorities are investigating reports of a large Shepparton funeral, held on August 11 between lockdowns, but potentially attended by people from NSW.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton told 3AW’s Neil Mitchell he was aware of a “large funeral” held in the town.
Shepparton has now been linked to a cluster of more than 20 cases.
Commissioner Patton said the health department was “looking at the numbers” and whether the funeral had breached any restrictions.
He made the comments after revealing police had issued more than 120 infringement notices for Covid breaches on the weekend after receiving more than 5400 calls to the police assistance line.
“We’ve had a lot of private gatherings — some public, but lots of private gatherings in apartments,” he told the show.
“People are still having dinner parties. The public are being very conscious in reporting people.
“That’s a good thing we think, the vast majority of people want to comply.”
RMH BRACES FOR MORE CASES
Health officials have increased protective measures for emergency department staff as officials brace for more Covid cases from one of Melbourne’s busiest hospitals.
PPE requirements in emergency departments have been increased to their highest level, with staff to wear N95 masks, gowns and eye protection while dealing with all patients in a bid to prevent them catching coronavirus.
Pre-operative testing — introduced during last year’s second wave but later revoked — will again be reinstated for all but the most urgent surgical cases, and on-site staff numbers will be scaled back.
It comes as 450 medical staff at the Royal Melbourne Hospital are on forced leave after a Covid-infected Shepparton man had surgery at the hospital.
Covid response deputy secretary Kate Matson said people were failing to get tested as soon as they experienced symptoms, one of the key reasons behind rising case numbers.
“Our teams are working as hard as they possibly can to get on top of this. Victorians can work equally as hard by getting tested as soon as you’ve got a slight symptom,” Ms Matson said.
Victoria’s health network has been forced to re-implement pre-operative testing, with pressure mounting on the government to use rapid testing in all hospitals and high-risk settings.
It comes after the Shepparton man, treated as the source of the Royal Melbourne Hospital cluster – now at seven cases – was not tested before his surgery on August 12.
A family member who visited a patient in the same room as the man later tested positive to the virus, alerting the hospital to the outbreak.
Both Minister Foley and Ms Matson said there was “no evidence” Victoria’s health system had dropped the ball.
“At that point in time there wasn’t a known risk in Shepparton, so there was no reason to necessarily test that gentleman prior to his surgery,” Ms Matson said. “We are now working with our health system to reintroduce pre-operative testing given the community transmission.”
Contact tracers are unsure as to whether the man is epidemiologically linked to the wider Shepparton outbreak, which has grown to 23 cases.
“We don’t have a source case for the Shepparton outbreak yet, we’re not sure how the outbreak started. It could well be a new incursion from New South Wales, it may be something else we don’t know yet,” Ms Matson added.
All 23 Shepparton cases are believed to be linked by family, but it forced at least 100 Goulburn Valley health staff into isolation through exposure site links.
A new infection from Mansfield, which has since been connected to Shepparton, was also detected on Sunday, and will be included in Monday’s case numbers.
Meanwhile, authorities are working with 120 businesses in a Sunshine West industrial zone with repeated positive wastewater detections.
There are now 27 Victorians in hospital with Covid, including a child aged under five. None are vaccinated, despite 18 being eligible.
As NSW reported a record 830 cases, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday it was “highly unlikely” Australia would get to zero cases, and the focus would move from case numbers to serious illness once vaccine targets were hit.
“You can’t live with lockdowns forever and at some point, you need to make that gear change,” he said.
Chief medical officer Paul Kelly said Doherty Institute modelling, which underpinned Australia’s four-step plan to ease restrictions once vaccination levels hit 70 and then 80 per cent, was still relevant despite rising infections.
PUBLIC SECTOR GETS PAID LEAVE FOR JABS
Victoria’s entire public sector — including nurses, teachers, emergency service personnel and government workers — will be given paid leave to get vaccinated.
Health Minister Martin Foley announced the measures on Sunday in a bid to get more Victorians vaccinated as part of the state’s drive to administer one million doses in five weeks.
It would give the entire public sector up to half a day’s paid time to get each dose of the vaccine.
The paid time off applies in addition to accrued sick leave, which can be used if people experience adverse side effects.
It will apply to full-time and part-time staff, as well as regular casuals in various roles at departments, administrative offices, statutory authorities, government schools, TAFEs, emergency services and other public sector agencies.
But the private sector is calling for vaccine incentives for all Victorians.
Small Business Australia executive director Bill Lang said small business families had no legal or financial support to help encourage employees to get the shot.
“If we are going to give the day off to those who do get jabbed, then let’s give that opportunity to all workers, not only the favoured few who must, given they have had zero financial impact, pay rises and seen their personal wealth increased, think that surviving a pandemic is as easy as a day watching Netflix,” Mr Lang said.
Opposition Leader Michael O’Brien said the new leave payments didn’t represent a substitute for a “real plan” to get more vaccines off the shelf and into arms.
Industrial Relations Minister Tim Pallas strongly encouraged all employers, including those in the private sector, to put in place similar arrangements.
STUDENTS FIGHT FOR FAIR GO, HOPE AND A PLAN
Education Minister James Merlino will hold urgent talks about mental health pressures with VCE students who have spent 40 per cent of their past two years learning from home.
He told the Herald Sun he “won’t waste a second getting students of all year levels back in classrooms as soon as the health advice allows”.
Mr Merlino has agreed to have a virtual meeting next week with VCE students to talk about the pathway towards October exams.
“We’ve already laid out a plan for year 12s in their crucial last months of school to give them clarity on their final exam periods,” Mr Merlino said.
His plan for VCE includes an on-campus GAT on September 9 and allowances for on-campus student assessments where they can’t be done virtually.
But there was no mention of bringing VCE students back to campus if remote learning continues beyond September 2, or a commitment for the priority vaccination of staff and students.
Morgan Vella, a year 12 student from Kyabram P-12 College, who started a petition asking for exams to be delayed and the content to be reduced, has agreed to a meeting with the state government.
“It’s sad to say a lot of year 12s have been trying to commit suicide and it’s really awful,” he said.
The meeting will include year 12 students from the VCE What’s the Plan Dan group (#vcewhatstheplandan) who are asking for clarity, compassion and immediate vaccination of teachers and students to expedite a return to face-to-face learning.
The group organised a “shadow pandemic” protest in which students left their bags out the front of their houses at 5.45pm on Sunday.
Liv, 17, says students “just want a plan to give us hope for our futures and to be given a fair go”.
ROLL UP AT NEW HUB
The state’s second drive-through centre will begin vaccinating Victorians with Pfizer on Monday from the comfort of their vehicles.
The former Ford Factory site in Campbellfield has been turned into a makeshift vaccination centre, with about 2000 people expected to get inoculated a week.
The centre, managed by St Vincent’s Hospital, Hume City Council and the Department of Health, will stock Pfizer, with AstraZeneca expected to be added soon. Drive-up appointments are not yet available, and bookings are required.
St Vincent’s Hospital chief executive Angela Nolan said the centre provided another option for people in Melbourne’s north to get vaccinated.
The Campbellfield site is one of four drive-in vaccination hubs across the state. Sites have also been set up at Sandown Racecourse, Springvale, and Eagle Stadium in Werribee.
MUSIC WON’T STOP FOR PORT PHILLIP
Musicians, bands and live music venues will have their bills paid for gigs cancelled due to Covid-19 lockdowns in a bid to keep the struggling industry alive.
The City of Port Phillip will become the first council in Australia to pay promoters and band rooms up to $5000 a week to help make ends meet until the end of the year.
In another first, the council will pay pubs and venues $250 to hire musicians from the likes of St Kilda, Port Melbourne, Elwood and South Melbourne to play once lockdowns end.
Melbourne musician Patrick Pierce – of Melbourne duo The Pierce Brothers – said it would be a godsend to artists left high and dry by the cancellation of live music.
“This time people are starting to feel the sting a bit more … some people are looking at moving out of Australia and heading to US because they are struggling,’’ he said. “But I think we can start seeing the light at the end of the tunnel as well.’’
The Please Don’t Stop the Music campaign will be funded with money saved from the cancellation of the 2021 St Kilda Festival.
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