Health officials are investigating a Covid transmission between two school students and another at a playground.
The contact is a concern for the Victorian government and its growing exposure sites.
Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton said with the delta variant there is a greater risk of spreading the virus between children.
“Fifty of our current cases are under the age of 10. We have seen child to child transmission throughout this outbreak, in schools, in other circumstances. It happens very quickly in households between children,” he said.
“We are investigating a potential transmission in a playground. It is not definitive and maybe we will not be able to make it definitive but it looks like there has been transmission in a playground.
“We have also seen transmission between students who were not in classes together who did not have any other face to face interaction other than sharing a walk home, didn't play together, don't live together, didn't have classes together.”
Of the 24 new cases, 21 have been linked to known outbreaks and 10 were infectious in the community.
For all the latest, follow our live blog below.
Updates
Worrying figure for Victoria
Front line workers in private aged care facilities are “nowhere near” being fully vaccinated against coronavirus, Daniel Andrews has revealed.
The Commonwealth government runs the private aged care sector in Victoria, while the Andrews government controls all public nursing homes.
The Victorian Premier said vaccination rates among staff in public aged care facilities were close to 100 per cent, but the same could not be said for the Commonwealth-run facilities.
“Private aged care is nowhere near that number, nowhere near that number,” Mr Andrews said.
The man who tested positive for Covid-19 in the Northern Territory on Monday has refused to tell authorities whether he has been vaccinated or not, authorities say.
NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner said the man had been co-operating in every way except on disclosing whether he had been inoculated.
“He won't divulge his vaccination status, so we have to operate as if he is unvaccinated,” Mr Gunner said at a press conference on Tuesday.
“He may be vaccinated. But he won’t tell us.“I don’t know why he won’t tell us his vaccination status.”
New Zealand has broken a 170 day no-Covid streak with one case reported on Tuesday.
The case, identified in Auckland, is being investigated by health officials and no links have been established.
It is not known whether it is the Deltra strain.
'Ban Dan' thrown out of court
A woman fined for carrying an anti-Daniel Andrews sign during Victoria’s deadly second wave has had her case against the state’s health bosses thrown out of court.
Kerry Cotterill was initially fined for failing to comply with stay-at-home orders for protesting in September 2020.
The Cranbourne West woman was walking within 5km of her home and carrying a sign with a hand-drawn image of Premier Daniel Andrews with “Toot to boot” written on it.
She was also wearing a mask that had the words “Ban Dan” on it.
Ms Cotterill said she was exercising and demonstrating against the lockdown at the same time. Under the rules in place at the time, exercising was a permitted reason to leave the home while protesting was not.
Several bayside suburbs have emerged as a new Covid-19 hot spot as Melbourne battles a worsening virus outbreak.
Five mystery cases have now popped up across Port Phillip, Glen Eira, Bayside, and particularly the suburb of East St Kilda, with health authorities concerned the virus is circulating unchecked.
Of the three unlinked infections announced on Tuesday, one was a St Kilda resident without any clear connection to other cases, while another St Kilda resident was known to the third mystery case in the City of Melbourne but their source of acquisition is unknown.
Four of Tuesday’s 24 new cases were also from the St Kilda East community, including three linked the infamous engagement party from last week.
Victorian Chief Health officer Brett Sutton. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Geraghty
Hospital staffer sacked over 'abhorrent' comment
The Royal Melbourne Hospital has sacked a female clinical assistant for suggesting Jewish Orthodox revellers from an illegal engagement party in St Kilda should be “put in the gas chamber”.
The comment was made on a Facebook post where people were discussing how the party had the potential to create a superspreader event that could keep Melbourne locked down longer.
The comment was brought to the attention of the hospital’s executive team.
“The Royal Melbourne Hospital is aware of a hospital support staff member who made abhorrent and disgraceful anti-Semitic comment on Facebook,” the hospital said in a statement.
Apology for Peacock Inn
Victorian Police Commissioner Shane Patton has apologised for his language when describing a weekend pub-crawl near the Peacock Inn.
"I went on to speak about how a musician was playing music nearby and people were sitting outside that location. It was done as a reference point. There was ambiguity in my language that has been about the Peacock Inn," he said.
The venue wasn't serving any of the alcohol or the food involved. It was used as a reference point. I could have been clearer with my language, so I do regret that.
"Businesses who are doing the right thing, we don't want them to suffer anymore detriment than currently is being caused because of what they are experiencing."
Dibber dobbers wanted for Victoria
Victorian police have asked the community to call Crime Stoppers if they spot someone breaching the publich health orders.
Victoria Police Commissioner Shane Patton said while it was a strange sentiment he encouraged the community to do the right thing.
"It is interesting terminology and it sounds un-Australian to say dob people in," he said.
"I have heard reports of different numbers of people being turned away. I would urge those people to note few through the police assistance line. We have local police who are tasked and who are doing foot patrols."
St Kilda engagment party cluster
St Kilda engagement party cases: One who had virus and attended Five more from the party who have since been infected@newscomauHQ
Health authorities revealed that more cases have emerged in the LGAs of Port Phillip, Glen Eira and Bayside.
Coronavirus response deputy secretary Kate Matson raised concerns over five mystery cases linked to the St Kilda area, including Dandenong and Middle Park residents who work in the suburb.
“We are concerned that there are cases here that we do not yet know about,” she said.
“These cases got the virus from somewhere. The virus is circulating in those geographic areas of Melbourne … These cases are not linked by age. They’re not linked by faith. They aren’t all in the same book club. They’re not all on the same footy club.
“The only thing they share is geographic proximity.”
The cryptocurrency day partner of a model didn’t immediately answer her angry texts on the day of his mum’s death for a chilling reason, a court has been told.
