Covid surges in regions including Geelong, Ballarat, Casey, Wyndham and Whittlesea: Check the number of cases in your area on our map

An average of 16 Victorians a day have died of Covid this week, up from nine the week before, as the state’s winter death toll continues to rise.

An average of 16 Victorians a day have died of Covid in the past week, up from nine the week before.

The Victorian Department of Health on Friday evening revealed 113 Covid deaths had been reported in the state over the last week.

The previous week 64 people died from the virus, which was a rise on the week before that.

In good news, however, the number Victorians hospitalised with Covid during the week has dipped to 313 — a 24 per cent decrease on the previous week.

There were currently 255 Covid patients in Victorian hospitals, with 13 in intensive care, the department said.

“Covid hospital admissions continued to decrease this week, with the number of Covid wastewater detections also lower than in previous weeks,” it said.

“There remains a substantial amount of Covid transmission in the community along with other respiratory viruses such as influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).”

Are air purifiers slowing Covid in schools?

A $113.6 million Victorian government investment in installing air purifiers in every classroom of Victorian public and low-fee private schools has seemingly failed to prevent winter Covid outbreaks.

A total of 110,000 air purifiers were purchased and rolled out through Victorian schools in 2021 and 2022 “to help reduce the transmission of illness,” a Department of Education spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday.

But one Herald Sun reader said purifiers at the school she was associated with were now not being turned on because of rising energy bills and the expense of running them, while some teachers have questioned their effectiveness.

In March last year the Andrews government promised to more than double the number of air purifiers in schools to keep students and staff safer and slow the spread of Covid, with an extra 60,000 air purifiers on top of the 51,000 already delivered.

Students at St John Vianney primary school students in their classroom with an air purifier received in early 2022 .Picture: Rob Leeson.

In a statement at the time, then Education Minister James Merlino said the more than $113.6 million investment would “see a purifier in every single classroom, instead of just high risk areas of schools”.

“This winter allocation will provide enough purifiers to cover all classrooms and other high-risk spaces in all government and low fee non-government schools (those with annual fees under $7,500) by the beginning of winter – including general purpose classrooms and other specialist classrooms such as art and science rooms,” he said.

Questions over the effectiveness of air purifiers come as Victorian deaths from Covid continue to rise.

The latest wastewater testing reveals the super-spreading XBB 1.16 variant, dubbed Arcturus, and the XBB.1.5 variant, nicknamed Kraken, are now most prevalent in the state.

Victorian government data shows some regional and outer suburban Victorian council areas — like Geelong with 302 cases, the City of Casey with 293, Whittlesea with 238, Wyndham with 233 and Ballarat with 216 — are copping it worst in the state’s latest Covid wave.

Closer to inner Melbourne, Darebin with 210 cases and Merri-Bek (formerly Moreland) with 209 had the highest number of Covid cases last week.

Outgoing Victorian chief health officer Prof Brett Sutton has stressed the importance of Victorians continuing to take steps to minimise the spread of Covid, by wearing high-quality and well-fitted masks, keeping up to date with vaccine boosters, staying at home for at least five days if and when they get Covid and ensuring there was high ventilation and clean air circulating in any busy indoor spaces they spent time in.

According to the DHHS website, good ventilation and clean air is key to reducing Covid spread.

“Covid-19 spreads when a person breathes out very small droplets or aerosols that contain the virus. Aerosols can float in the air for a long time and other people breathe them in, spreading the virus. Adding fresh air into a space reduces the number of aerosols in a room and reduces the risk of Covid-19 transmission from one person to another,” the DHHS website states.

“Good ventilation, along with other simple steps such as face masks and testing, reduces the risk of spreading Covid-19.”

Students from St Joan of Arc Primary with purifiers donated by Karcher, in late 2021. Picture: Tony Gough

The department strongly encourages the use of air purifiers in crowded indoor spaces saying: “Consider using portable filtration units.”

In promotion for its air purifiers, The Clean Air Company said it had installed an air purification system in the modern, “education unions” building at 120 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne, that “ensured the health and safety of building staff and visitors” and allowed employees to return to the workplace.

The building includes the Australian Education Union, the National Tertiary Education Union and the independent Education Union of Victoria and Tasmania.

“They needed an effective indoor air purification solution that could protect their staff & visitors from the Covid virus and allow a return to full capacity indoors,” the company said.

It claimed the technology provided “cutting-edge indoor air purification that proactively treats every cubic inch of airconditioned space, reducing airborne and surface bacteria, viruses, odours and mould – including 99.9% efficacy against the SARS-CoV-2 virus”.

The development was slammed as “absolute hypocrisy” on social media by advocacy group Covid Safe Schools on Tuesday, saying the federal teachers’ union had “done nothing to advocate for clean air in school classrooms, while ensuring its own staff get clean air”.

But Australian Education Union Victorian branch president Meredith Peace told the Herald Sun her union had strongly campaigned for the health and wellbeing of all public education staff and students since the start of the pandemic, winning a range of critical Covid safe measures for public school principals, teachers, education support staff and students - including air purifiers in schools.

“Any suggestion that the health and safety of staff and students in public education was not at the forefront of our campaigning is blatantly false and flies in the face of all available evidence,” she said.