Rolling coverage: Six cases, no deaths; how truck driver slipped through contact tracers’ nets
A coronavirus outbreak in the Elwood community has grown, with four active cases now linked to the cluster. It comes as further details were revealed about the line of transmission which led to the outbreaks in Kilmore and Shepparton, with the infectious truck driver “unknowingly slipping the net” before spreading COVID-19 in regional Victoria. Meanwhile, Friday’s National Cabinet meeting has been postponed.
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Health authorities have revealed how a Melbourne truck driver who spread coronavirus to regional Victoria “slipped the net” of contact tracers.
Deputy Chief Health Officer Allen Cheng said a Chadstone cleaner was tested on September 25, with DHHS becoming aware of the result the following day.
But contact tracers were unaware the cleaner had worked at the shopping centre until September 28, when the manager of The Butcher Club was admitted to hospital for an unrelated reason.
He was found to have coronavirus, and health authorities linked his illness to the cleaner, publicising it on September 29.
An apprentice from the butcher shop — the truck driver’s son — was tested that same day and received a positive result on September 30.
But the truck driver had already left for Kilmore on September 29 and was not known to be a close contact at the time.
After an overnight stay at a residential property, the driver returned home on September 30 and was tested on October 1 when he felt unwell — but he had already spread the infection in regional Victoria, visiting Kilmore, Benalla and Shepparton while asymptomatic.
And during his travels, the truck driver flouted stage four rules, dining in at a cafe and visiting a Bunnings store.
Prof Cheng said the case had “slipped through” contact tracers’ nets.
“There is unfortunately that slipping through the net, and a lot of the spread had occurred before they became symptomatic,” he said.
He also expressed fears for the regional community after prolonged exposure to the virus a fortnight ago.
“The exposure happened at the end of September so this is now two weeks ago,” Prof Cheng said.
“What concerns us now is that there have been cases in Shepparton that have been infectious for a longer period of time, so almost two weeks … There is the opportunity that the first case has infected someone and then may have caused onward infection to the secondary contacts.”
Meanwhile, six new cases of coronavirus have been recorded in Victoria overnight, with four remaining under investigation.
Of the two linked cases, one is associated with the Chadstone outbreak and the other is related in a community outbreak in Elwood.
The other four cases have been provisionally linked to known outbreaks and cases, with two being investigated for links to a case from the Box Hill Hospital outbreak and another is being linked to a previous case at Woolworths QV.
Of today’s six new cases, there are three in Whitehorse and single cases in Hume, Port Phillip and Glen Eira.
The Elwood community outbreak has been linked to four cases, all of which remain active.
Premier Daniel Andrews revealed the metropolitan LGAs with the highest number of active cases: Wyndham (21), Brimbank (16), Hume (15), Banyule (13) and Hobsons Bay (13).
No deaths were recorded, and regional Victoria’s 14-day rolling average remains unchanged at 0.6, while Melbourne’s dipped to 8.9 — down from 9.6 on Wednesday.
A strong testing push has seen more than 15,400 samples received on Wednesday, including more than 1800 Shepparton locals.
Hundreds of people in the Goulburn Valley town are isolating after an outbreak that emerged on Wednesday.
“We have got about 400 people in the Shepparton community that are either cases, contacts or their contacts, so those three separate groups of people who are all linked through potential chains of transmission,” Mr Andrews said.
“They are isolated at home and they are isolated at home because of one person.
“That’s the nature of this virus. It spreads wildly. The number of people that can be caught up in different chains of transmission with even just one common element is many, many hundreds of people.”
Currently, there are 175 active cases across the state, including 14 healthcare workers and eight cases in regional Victoria.
Meanwhile, NSW has recorded 11 new cases, all in Sydney. Six of those cases are local transmissions and five are in hotel quarantine.
NEW HIGH-RISK LOCATIONS NAMED
More than a dozen locations, including supermarkets and dry cleaners, have been added to the list of Melbourne’s high-risk locations.
They include:
• Coles Tooronga Village, Tooronga Rd, Glen Iris - October 10, 12.30pm - 1.10pm
• David Jones, Malvern Central, Malvern - October 1, 4pm - 4.30pm; October 2, 1.30pm - 2.00pm; October 5, 2pm - 2.30pm
• Coles Malvern – October 6, 1.45-2.15pm; October 8, 1-1.30pm
• Endeavour Hills Shopping Centre – October 10, 8.30am-1.30pm
• Endeavour Hills Dry Cleaners – October 10, 8.30am-1.30pm
• Waverley Gardens Shopping Centre, Mulgrave – October 9, 9.30am-2pm
• Waverley Gardens Dry Cleaners, Mulgrave – October 8, 10am-2pm; October 9, 9.30am-2pm; October 10, 10am-2pm
• Westfield Fountain Gate, Narre Warren – October 8, 10am-1pm
• Fountain Gate Dry Cleaners, Narre Warren – October 8, 10am-1pm; October 9, 8-11am
• Woolworths Malvern – September 30, 1-1.40pm; October 1, 3.25-4pm; October 4, 3-3.30pm; October 5, 2-2.30pm; October 6, 1-1.30pm
• Woolworths Box Hill Central – October 9-10, 1.30-1.50pm
• Coles Taylors Hill – October 1, 6.00-6.20pm
• Coles Tooronga Village, Glen Iris – October 2, 3.15-3.45pm; October 3, 3.20-3.50pm; October 7, 1-1.30pm; October 9, 1.20-1.50pm
• Coles Summerhill, Reservoir – October 6, 7.10-7.30pm
• Woolworths Blackburn South – October 10, 1.30-1.50pm
Health authorities warned that people who visited the locations during those time frames should be on watch for coronavirus symptoms and get tested if experiencing any.
Those locations are not a current risk to the public.
SECOND DAY OF CHAOS IN SHEPPARTON
GV Health confirmed 120 of its healthcare workers had been forced into isolation but stressed its 4500-strong workforce could still keep up with demand.
It comes as queues at Shepparton’s coronavirus testing centres began mounting before dawn and one site reached its capacity 90 minutes after opening.
It was revealed on Wednesday that a fresh outbreak had spread from the Chadstone cluster.
At 6.30am on Thursday, at least 20 people had queued at the Goulburn Valley Health location in the regional town despite testing not opening until 8am.
By 8am, a few hundred people were already lined up, with the queue spilling around the corner and down the road.
Citizens brought chairs, coffee and books to keep them entertained while they wait.
A security guard told people in the testing queue at 9am there were possibly 600 already lined up.
He said they were already discussing where the “cut-off” was so not to make people line up unnecessarily.
And the showgrounds testing site reached capacity at 9.30am, with the council telling people to leave if they do not have symptoms or have not attended a listed hotspot.
People were advised to instead attend GV Health’s testing clinic, the Shepparton Respiratory Centre and the two drive-through testing sites at the Shepparton Sports Precinct.
“We expect long queues so please come prepared,” a statement said.
“We ask you bring some water, food, a hat, sunscreen and possibly a folding chair if you can’t stand for long periods of time.”
Meanwhile, hospital workers are encouraging people in testing queues to dial a hotline and pre-register their details.
But many in the queue say the number was engaged, and have been told to keep trying.
Bernadette had been in the GV Health testing queue with her two young children since 7.50am.
She said she was turned away from the centre on Wednesday.
“I came over with the kids about 2.30 and was told it was closed,” she said.
“The three of us have symptoms and I was at Bunnings.”
Bernadette said the situation was stressful, but there wasn’t much she could do about it.
“Obviously it’s hard — the kids just want to go home,” she said.
“But it’s good so many people are being careful.”
Chaos reigned in the regional town on Wednesday as hundreds of angry residents were turned away from overwhelmed testing centres amid fears of a major COVID-19 outbreak in regional Victoria.
Many were forced to queue in crowded pens for up to six hours to be screened. Among those turned away from testing sites was a woman who worked at Bunnings — a location “of concern”.
The system buckled with an influx of people coming forward, with reported wait times of up to five hours.
Sarah has been waiting in the line for more than five and a half hours, and has sat on the ground out of exhaustion.
With dozens of people ahead of her in the queue, the teacher faces at least another hour wait to get tested.
“I’m tired and mentally exhausted,” she said.
“I brought books, but there’s only so much you can take in.”
But she said it was important to “endure” the fatigue and irritation, and praised staff for their efforts.
“They’ve been thoughtful about providing water and food and have been good about turning people away,” she said.
GV Health chief Matt Sharp said the hospital had tested 492 for COVID-19 at its two tested sites as of 6pm Wednesday.
The Shepparton Respiratory Clinic took 335 swabs, taking the total number of people tested to more than 800.
Mr Sharp said the contact tracing team was currently overseeing 411 close contacts and 70 secondary close contacts.
He said the testing efforts on Thursday were being supported by other regional health services and the ADF.
Authorities had urged residents to get tested after it emerged a super spreader had tricked contact tracers almost two weeks earlier, failing to reveal he had visited the city.
The man, a truck driver, had contracted the virus from his son, who works at Chadstone’s The Butcher Club. He was first interviewed on October 2.
He sparked an outbreak in Kilmore, where he breached restrictions by dining in at a cafe, and told contact tracers he visited Benalla but not Shepparton.
Authorities made no attempt to verify his movements, in another embarrassing revelation for the state’s contact-tracing system.
The new drive-through testing site in Shepparton will open from 3pm today at Central Park Recreation Reserve, corner Central Ave and Channel Road, Shepparton East.
It will close at 7pm.
This site will also be open from 8.30am to 5pm tomorrow.
NATIONAL CABINET MEETING DELAYED
Friday’s national cabinet meeting has been postponed because of a technical issue with Scott Morrison’s plane.
The Prime Minister has spent the week in Queensland, ahead of the state election at the end of this month.
He was in Cairns on Thursday and was due to fly back to Sydney ahead of Friday’s meeting with state and territory leaders, the first to be held in a month.
But the Herald Sun understands a problem with his RAAF plane has forced Mr Morrison to delay his travel plans and postpone the meeting.
The leaders were due to discuss the progress of the states in reopening by Christmas, a goal agreed by all except Western Australia.
The meeting agenda also included an update on a national review of hotel quarantine systems, as the federal government finalises plans to fly more Australians back home.
Aged care, mental health and the federal government’s budget were other issues that were supposed to be discussed.
REMOTE LEARNING RESUMES IN SHEPPARTON
Shepparton schools have been jerked back into remote learning as the virus forces teachers into isolation.
In a message to parents on Wednesday night, Greater Shepparton Secondary College principal Genevieve Simson said some year levels would learn from home for the remainder of the week.
The students include years 7, 8 and 10 across the three campuses.
Year 9 students and VCE students are still attending on-site.
“Although I would like to reassure you that no cases of COVID-19 have been detected on our school site, and that our school remains open, there are implications to having so many staff absent,” Ms Simson said.
Shepparton’s Notre Dame College also cancelled Year 8 classes on Thursday and Friday.
Deputy principal Kris Walker said the school had been “significantly impacted”.
“A high number of our staff and students have required testing and will be absent as per quarantine advice from DHHS,” she said.
ROGUE TRUCK DRIVER LINKED TO NINE CASES
Three cases emerged in Shepparton on Wednesday while the Kilmore cluster grew to six — linking the rogue truck driver to at least nine cases.
The three new Shepparton cases were among just seven new cases recorded across the state on Wednesday.
Five deaths were reported, taking the growing Victorian death toll to 816.
Nine Australian Defence Force members were deployed to Shepparton to bolster testing efforts, with another drive-through site to open on Thursday.
Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton on Wednesday said he would consider forcing the inspection of personal phone data, which could reveal critical GPS movements, to validate stories being told to contact tracers.
“If we have to interrogate phones for GPS information, those powers are available,” he said.
“There are powers in the Public Health and Wellbeing Act for me to request information, demand information, for the purpose of assessing a public health risk.
“I will consider that in circumstances where information might not be forthcoming.
“If we’ve got that suspicion that information is being hidden and there’s another mechanism to validate that, I’ll absolutely use those powers.”
People questioned for contact-tracing purposes receive immunity from being fined for COVID-related breaches.
“I want to emphasise that just being honest with us and giving the full and frank account of all of those elements are really important,” Prof Sutton said.
Premier Daniel Andrews warned more cases were likely before the outbreak was contained.
“There is almost certainly going to be more that were all completely preventable if this individual had told the full story,” he said.
“If you happen to have visited a pretty large regional town, to not tell us you have done that is not the right thing to do.”
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said it was “not acceptable” a COVID-positive Melburnian had failed to tell contact tracers he had travelled to Shepparton.
Asked whether Victorian authorities should use phone and GPS data to confirm the movements of those who tested positive for COVID-19, Mr Hunt said they should use “all of the available tools in order to track them down”.
Shepparton MP Suzanna Sheed said the community was reeling from the news after spending weeks without a single case of coronavirus.
“There will be great anxiety in my community,” she said.
Ms Sheed said it would be difficult to catch up to the virus after it had been in the area for potentially 10 to 12 days.
“You would just have to wonder why someone wasn’t prepared to say they’d been Shepparton when they were prepared to say that they’d been to both Kilmore and Benalla,” she said.
“It sets us back as a community.”
FEAR, FURY AS VIRUS INUNDATES SHEPPARTON
Just two days ago life in Shepparton was ticking along nicely — people were eating in cafes and restaurants, the mall was bustling with foot traffic and there was a carefree air.
But on Tuesday night a coronavirus bomb went off in the town.
Fear and fury spread like wildfire as locals scrambled to testing sites first thing on Wednesday.
The scene was extraordinary — hundreds of people bundled together in “COVID pens” waiting to be tested.
But after a sweaty wait of up to six hours in the sun, hundreds of potentially infected people were turned away because testing sites had reached capacity.
Tyler Howard was about to leave the line — until he let staff know he was waiting because he was an official close contact and was rushed to the front of the queue.
He estimated a couple of hundred people were turned away in front and behind him.
“It’s a bit upsetting and annoying,” he said. “I’m sure the ones who need the tests are being turned away too.”
Vicky, who worked at Shepparton Bunnings on September 30 — the day the Melbourne super spreader visited — was outraged by the decision.
“They are not doing priority testing. They are way underprepared,” she said.
The outbreak of COVID-19 in Shepparton was a hard pill for locals to swallow.
The town they had so carefully guarded in recent months had been infected by an outsider.
The fact the superspreader kept secret his trip to Shepparton for a fortnight only added insult to injury.
Leanne Stride, owner of Lemon Tree Cafe — deemed a high-risk location and shut down by authorities — said she was devastated for her beloved town.
“It’s a kick in the guts,” she said. “We have been doing so well and doing all the right things but here it is — it got us — and it wasn’t locally. That’s the saddest thing.
“I am pretty angry and disappointed (the man did not tell contact tracers). It shows so much disrespect to our community.”
The Aussie Hotel owner Paul Tsorbaris said his restaurant was running at capacity under current restrictions until news of the outbreak hit. He had few through his door on Wednesday and more than a dozen weekend cancellations.
“I am fearful of Shepparton shutting down,” he said.
Mr Tsorbaris said the man who brought COVID-19 to Shepparton should be jailed.
“Let’s get serious about this,” he said. “He failed to tell people he came to Shepparton.
“He deserves to go to jail. He has ruined our town. (My pub) would normally be full.”
Mr Tsorbaris lashed out at Premier Daniel Andrews, saying the “ring of steel” and contact tracing system had failed once again.
Zoe, who waited for a test at Goulburn Valley Health on Wednesday, was furious someone had come into the region and spread the virus.
“I think he’s an idiot he didn’t tell contact tracers they were in Shepparton and I think they should have the finger pointed at them and not the system,” she said.
“More should’ve been done.
“There probably should’ve been more testing sites, too.”
Goulburn Valley Health chief executive Matt Sharp apologised to the public for the long testing times.
“We are working on a solution that will allow people to pre-register before attending for testing or while waiting in line,” he said.
TWO-WEEK DELAY FOR A CAR YARD WARNING
Contact tracers took two weeks to tell a Melbourne car dealership a customer was COVID-positive.
The infected customer spent 90 minutes at the car yard, in the eastern suburbs, on September 29 but workers were notified only on Tuesday.
The car yard manager, who asked not to be named, said on Wednesday he was “alarmed” by the belated warning that his staff were exposed to a positive case. He said contact tracers did not explain the reason for the delay and were initially reluctant to provide the name of the COVID-positive customer, citing privacy reasons.
Several hours after the initial call on Tuesday morning, a member of the contact tracing team called the manager in the afternoon to provide the customer’s name to assist with tracing efforts.
The manager told radio 3AW the issue was handled “very poorly” and left his employees nervous. About 20 staff may have been exposed, and up to 30 customers. “The one blessing in disguise is that it’s 14 days later and hopefully we’ve passed the incubation period and no one’s presented with any symptoms to this point,” he said.
“It just shows significant flaws in this contract tracing system, which is … our main weapon against this virus and it’s not good enough.”
Victoria’s testing and community engagement commander Jeroen Weimar said the delay was not good enough. “It’s very hard to identify where someone’s been if that information is not forthcoming … Had we known that 10, 12 days ago … fewer people would have been exposed.”