Locals confused by lack of exposure sites in wake of active case

A small Mornington Peninsula town is demanding answers after being “named and shamed” over a single, mystery case.

A prominent hotelier who challenged lockdown in the High Court is now fighting a new Covid battle

Julian Gerner is demanding more details about an active case – the first in more than a year – that was added to the Sorrento postcode on Monday

Mr Gerner said locals deserved an explanation behind the decision to “call out the town” over a single, “mystery case”.

“This is a small town, with a population of 1600 people – many of them elderly, vulnerable and afraid,” he said.

“What’s the motive for announcing Sorrento without any context as to what that means for the community?

“There are no exposure sites listed and no virus fragments in the waste water.

“Yet, Sorrento is being named and shamed in the daily press conference.”

Mr Gerner wondered if the active case was a part-time resident who had postcode 3943 listed as their permanent residence.

“I know of a lot of people who live in Melbourne but have 3943 on their drivers licence for tax reasons.”

Mr Gerner, who owns Morgans Restaurant and Bar in Sorrento, led the charge against lockdown in 2020, taking his case all the way to the High Court.

The case was ultimately dismissed.

Mornington Peninsula Shire councillor Susan Bissinger, who lives in Sorrento, also called for more details about the mystery case baffling locals.

“It is extremely worrying and disappointing that an entire township with a sizeable population that is considered vulnerable has to be thrown into a state of panic over a claim of a single Covid case without any hint of possible exposure sites,” she said.

“Like most communities in Victoria we have extensive QR coding in Sorrento. If a case was identified, wouldn’t a trail of exposure sites be readily available almost immediately?”

The Department of Health and Human Services has listed a case in Sorrento on its website.

DHHS has been contacted for comment.

VIRUS RETURNS TO MORNINGTON PENINSULA

Sorrento is gearing up to fight Covid once more after an active case was recorded there.

The small town was added to the growing list of Victorian postcodes with the virus on Monday.

The case was one of 22 “mystery cases” recorded across Victoria.

The positive test attached to Sorrento came without warning as the nearest confirmed exposure site was almost 40km away in Frankston at a community vaccination hub at the Bayside Centre.

There had also been no concerning fragments recently detected in Mornington Peninsula waste water.

Local and Mornington Peninsula Shire councillor Susan Bissinger said Sorrento had beaten Covid before and would do so again.

“There’s hasn’t been a case since September (2020) but we had up to 44 cases here last year as part of the Aspen cluster,” she said.

“This town led the way with mask wearing and sanitising to get rid of the virus.”

Cr Bissinger called for calm as angry residents took to social media to blast day trippers breaching lockdown to visit the region.

“People are angry and scared and I do understand. It is busier than summer down here and all the lights are on in Portsea.

“But pointing the finger isn’t going to help.

“This is a great opportunity for our community to unite and fight this, like we successfully did with the Aspen breakout.”

On Friday, Mayor Despi O’Connor called for locals to dob in those doing the wrong thing in the region after an Airbnb host was fined $10,900 for breaching the chief health officers orders.

“We have one of the highest populations of older people in the State and they are especially vulnerable to the coronavirus,” Cr O’Connor said.

Another local called for number plate recognition technology to be introduced at peninsula entry points and others said the new case was proof the shire should be given the same protections as regional Victoria.

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.

Covid-19 commander Jeroen 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.”