Coronavirus Melbourne: Daniel Andrews warns virus cases still ‘out there’

Daniel Andrews has warned there are likely undetected cases in the state on day one of lockdown, as fears grow restrictions could be extended.

Almost 1,000 close contacts have been linked to the Holiday Inn cluster and that number is expected to get even bigger.

Confirmed cases grew to 13 in Victoria after a primary close contact of one of the workers from the Holiday Inn tested positive to the virus.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the number of people potentially exposed to the virus was expected to grow as new information from contact tracing, interviews and QR codes came in.

He warned “there are cases out there” that have gone undetected on the state’s first day of lockdown.

The Premier said the lockdown was a “precautionary approach” but added he felt coronavirus cases had slipped “through the net”.

It comes as Victoria reported just one new locally acquired case on Saturday, the first of the state’s five-day hard lockdown.

“The facts are this is a precautionary approach, one that is based on the best help advice. We are testing people and getting many pleasing test results,” Mr Andrews said.

“Part of that abundance of caution is the assumption, there are cases out there that we don’t know about, and they were not necessarily caught up in the net.

“We said we didn’t know about it. It’s out there in the community more broadly. We have to assume that has happened. It’s not just an assumption, but we know this is moving really, really fast.”

Mr Andrews urged Victorians to “stick together” and “focus on the facts” as concerns grew the lockdown could be extended beyond a five day period.

“Focus on the facts. We will be here briefing you every day. There is no cause for anyone to be speculating about that. The advice remains the same to me. This is an important thing for us to do.”

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Daniel Andrews has warned there could be undetected cases ‘out there’. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Paul Jeffers

CONCERN VICTORIAN LOCKDOWN COULD EXTEND FOR TWO WEEKS

Victorian residents have already started panicking after a constitutional lawyer warned the lockdown directions are already in force for longer than five days.

Dr Luke Beck, an associate professor in Constitutional Law at Monash University warned on Twitter the directions posted by the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services are for a two-week period, not five days.

“Victoria’s new lockdown Directions are in force for 2 weeks (not 5 days), unless further new Directions are issued to end the lockdown earlier,” Dr Beck wrote.

Melbourne’s chief health officer Brett Sutton has responded to questions about public health directions, saying the dates are just legal wording. He said at this stage the government intends to lockdown the state for just “five days, absolutely”.

A constitutional lawyer has warned the period for a lockdown was for two weeks, not five days.

Victoria's new lockdown Directions are in force for 2 weeks (not 5 days), unless further new Directions are issued to end the lockdown earlierhttps://t.co/MCCzp50TeW#auslaw #lockdown #springst #vicpol pic.twitter.com/ZDX1RN9b8d

— Luke Beck (@DrLukeBeck) February 12, 2021

Professor Sutton insisted the lockdown would only extend for five days. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ David Crosling

“All directions have always been written until the end of the Thursday emergency period, whenever that relevant state of emergency period has been extended,” Prof Sutton said on Saturday.

“That applies to all directions across all periods. So they will be revoked at any point where we think the settings need to be changed. So that has applied previously when we have already had a flag date of easing of restrictions.

“We have still had an end date of the end of state of emergency period is absolutely nothing different in the way directions have made written at this stage. That has always been the way legal have approached it.

“Nothing should be read into it as having an intention to extend beyond a day beyond when we think they need to be in place. For now, that is five days, absolutely.”

The document immediately sparked concern among Victorian residents, who said they hadn’t been prepared for two weeks of lockdown.

“Why am I not surprised. I think the whole of Melbourne groaned and kicked up a fuss yesterday because we knew this would happen. 5 days is just the beginning of 2021,” one Twitter user wrote.

“When has he ever stuck to an original date when it comes to lockdown? There will always be a reason,” another woman wrote. “Like not enough tests, community transmission. We all know this is just the beginning. Lockdown till vaccine.”

Others tweeted at journalists urging them to question the Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews about the detail during his daily press conference.

Mr Andrews said in a press conference yesterday the lockdown would start from 11.59pm last night (Friday), and conclude at 11.59pm on Wednesday, February 17.

Victoria today recorded one new case of coronavirus as the state entered its first day of a snap five day lockdown.

The Victorian Government of Health announced this morning there has been one new locally acquired case of COVID-19 reported in the last 24 hours. It takes the total number of cases from the Holiday Inn cluster to 14.

ALMOST 1000 CLOSE CONTACTS LINKED TO QUARANTINE HOTEL

The new case reported today is a social primary close contact of one of the workers from the Holiday Inn, Premier Daniel Andrews said during a press conference today.

Through the night the Victorian Department of Health identified “38 household primary social close contacts of that person have been contacted, have been locked down, and we have already begun the process of testing each of those 38 people,” Mr Andrews said.

He said their results of their tests would be a feature of tomorrow’s briefing.

Mr Andrews also said they’d identified a further 996 primary close contacts linked to the Holiday Inn, and staff who’d worked at the facility. He said that number was still expected to grow as contact tracing, interviews and QR codes returned more information.

All 12 staff from the Brunetti cafe, where staff had been exposed to an infected worker, have now been tested. Of the 12 staff tested, 11 have now returned a negative result.

INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS SUSPENDED

Mr Andrews said the Prime Minister Scott Morrison agreed to suspend international flights over the five day lockdown period — however some flights would still arrive because they were already “in the air”.

“The Prime Minister has agreed to suspend flights, as I had asked, during this 5-day period, (but it takes) bit of time,” Mr Andrews said today.

“It’s not instantaneous because flights are already in the air, and people are well and truly on their way to coming home. They may be in transit, they may be in Singapore or another place, all those issues.”

“There will be five more flights arriving. We think there are about 100 passengers on those. They will be appropriately taken care of, but there are no further fights flights beyond those five until next Thursday but will keep you informed of that as we get closer to Thursday.”

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Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ David Crosling

INFECTED TRAVELLER FEELS ‘LIKE A CRIMINAL’

It comes as a traveller blamed for spreading coronavirus through the Holiday Inn after using a nebuliser in his room says he’s been made to feel “like a criminal”.

The 38-year-old man said he was given permission by twice Victorian health authorities to use his nebuliser while in hotel quarantine in an interview with the The Age.

The returned overseas traveller, who has severe asthma and is now in intensive care, said he’d declared the nebuliser, and claimed staff also offered to supply him with extra Ventolin.

The man and his partner have since tested positive for COVID-19, and a working theory is that his nebuliser, which creates fine aerosol particles, spread the virus to a food and beverage worker, and another resident in hotel quarantine.

His comments came as Victoria was plunged back into lockdown after the cluster caused by “hyper-infectious” UK strain grew to 14.

The man said he, his partner and his baby were left feeling like they’d “borne the brunt of the backlash” over the outbreak.

“If I was told that I couldn’t use it, I never would have used it,” the man said. “The way it has all come out in the news and through the government has made it sound like I was using it illegally or that I have snuck it in or something like that. It’s been very distressing.

“You are left feeling like a criminal or that you’ve done the wrong thing. That has been the hardest thing in all this.”

The man said he was twice given permission to use the nebuliser. Picture: Diego Fedele/Getty Images

VICTORIA WALKS TO LOCKDOWN

Premier Daniel Andrews plunged Victoria into a “short, sharp blast” of lockdown to try to keep a third coronavirus wave at bay after the Melbourne Airport Holiday Inn outbreak of COVID-19 cases grew to 14.

As of 11.59pm on Friday and for the next five days, anyone across the state can only leave home for four reasons – essential shopping, care and caregiving, exercise, and essential work.

Hundreds of people protested in the city’s CBD before the lockdown kicked in, with anti-lockdown protesters and mounted police gathering outside Melbourne Park.

Chaos gripped the Australian Open as fans were evicted midway through Novak Djokovic’s match against American Taylor Fritz, with a chorus of boos heard as they were told to leave Rod Laver Arena at 11.30pm.

Overnight, Victoria added seven venues to an exposure site list that now includes two bus routes, a train and Melbourne’s Terminal 4 as the cluster linked to the quarantine hotel grows.

The lockdown has an end date of 11.59pm on Wednesday, February 17 but boxed-in residents, who have had their hopes of an end to restrictions dashed in the past, will be watching and waiting to see what transpires between now and then.

The five-day lockdown is set until 11.59pm on February 17. Picture: Con Chronis/AFP

TRAVELLERS, HOTEL WORKERS AND SPOUSES INFECTED

Chief medical officer Professor Paul Kelly said on Friday that two cases have been identified as “having worked in Tullamarine Airport whilst infectious”.

The second airport worker was a cleaner who also worked at a school, and had already been identified as a primary close contact of a Holiday Inn case, the Herald Sun reported.

Prof Kelly has now declared the Greater Melbourne area a COVID-19 hotspot for the purposes of Commonwealth support, for an initial period of three days. He said this was because of “the increased risk posed by the B117 (UK) variant of concern, the occurrence of cases in the community whilst infectious, and the risk of spread to other jurisdictions in Australia”.

Five people tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, all linked to the Holiday Inn, which has been closed for a deep clean. The state’s health department said four of the five new cases are household primary close contacts of confirmed cases and were already in isolation. The other case is a hotel staff member who was tested as a primary close contact.

“All staff are in isolation and all residents have been moved,” the department states.

“Anyone who has been in this facility for more than 15 minutes between 27 January and 9 February is considered a primary close contact. They must immediately isolate, get a test, and stay isolated for 14 days.”

Genomic sequencing has already confirmed eight of the 13 are the highly contagious B117 variant however authorities are working with the theory that all of the cases are that strain.

On Friday night, Victoria’s health department clarified case and testing numbers will be provided every morning of the five-day lockdown.

“Throughout the day, we will continue to provide updates about testing locations, any exposure sites and other public health updates,” it said.

During the circuit breaker period, case and testing numbers will be provided every morning. Throughout the day, we will continue to provide updates about testing locations, any exposure sites and other public health updates.

— VicGovDH (@VicGovDH) February 12, 2021

“Given the airport is a hub for travel to all jurisdictions within Australia, there is substantial risk of national spread of the virus,” he said.

‘CIRCUIT BREAKER’ RESTRICTIONS

Under the new rules, exercise and shopping in Victoria is limited to five kilometres from home. Exercise is allowed for two hours a day with household members, your partner, or one other person who is not from your household.

Masks must be worn everywhere except at home. No visitors or public gatherings are allowed.

Weddings are off the cards unless on compassionate grounds and funerals can involve no more than 10 people for both indoor or outdoor settings.

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Victorian Premier, Daniel Andrews described the restrictions as short and sharp. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ David Crosling

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Mr Andrews said he was “confident” the imposed restrictions “will be effective”.

“We will be able to smother this. We will be able to prevent it getting away from us,” he told reporters on Friday afternoon.

“I want to be here on Wednesday next week announcing that these restrictions are coming off, but I can’t do it on my own. I need every single Victorian to work with me, and with our team, so that we can run this to ground and we can see this strategy work.”

He told the state to assume “there are further cases in the community than we have positive results for, and that it (the virus) is moving at a velocity that has not been seen anywhere in our country over the course of these last 12 months”.