Coronavirus Australia live news: Sydney hotel guard tests positive to virus
A security guard at Sydney’s Marriott Hotel who allegedly caught COVID-19 from a returned traveller worked at other locations while infectious.
- Sydney quarantine security guard tests positive
- Family of 4 ‘patients zero’
- Second wave came from hotel: DHHS
- Victoria records 17 deaths, 222 cases
- New Zealand cases spike
- City of Sydney declared hotspot
Welcome to The Australian’s rolling coverage of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. A security guard at Sydney’s Marriott Hotel in Circular Quay has been diagnosed with COVID-19 after allegedly contracting it from a returned traveller. A family of 4 returned travellers has been identified as ‘patients zero’ in Victoria’s second wave. All but 103 of all of Victoria’s 2109 genomically sequenced coronavirus cases since May 26 are linked to the Rydges Hotel, a DHHS epidemiologist says. Victoria has recorded 222 new cases of coronavirus and 17 people have died with the virus in the state in the 24 hours to Tuesday.
Paige Taylor 11pm: Police to guard ‘high-risk’ people in hotels
Police will be assigned to guard “high-risk” people in hotel quarantine in Perth after two young women from Adelaide allegedly evaded private security guards to escape a city Novotel and catch a taxi, reportedly to go to a party.
Isata Jalloh, 19, and Banchi Techanna, 22, were in a Perth women’s jail on Tuesday night after a brief court appearance by video link from a police watchhouse. They did not enter pleas to one charge each of failing to comply with a direction under WA’s state of emergency pandemic laws, which carries a maximum penalty of 12 months in jail or a $50,000 fine for individuals. The penalties are steeper for businesses.
The women caught a flight from Adelaide that landed in Perth at 8.20pm on Monday, acting police commissioner Gary Dreibergs said.
They had neither applied for or been granted the required exemption to come to Perth and when this was discovered at Perth airport, they were refused entry and taken to a hotel in Murray Street in Perth’s central business district. They were told by police at Perth airport that they would be held in quarantine until they could be put on a plane back to Adelaide.
Mr Dreibergs said the women bolted from the hotel at about 1.30am on Tuesday and got into a taxi. Police found them in a block of units with “associates” shortly before 9am on Tuesday. They were not West Australians returning home and told police they were in Perth for a holiday and to visit family.
He said from now on police would provide additional security at quarantine hotels for “high risk people”. The Australian understands that could include people who were suspected of not being truthful or who arrived without the required exemption and were being quarantined temporarily ahead of imminent removal.
Security at Perth’s quarantine hotels is provided by private firms and some army personnel. However it is police who have extraordinary powers under the state’s pandemic laws. Currently police attend on request.
“We are going to do a much more thorough risk assessment (of arrivals from interstate and overseas) and place police at hotels where we deem it necessary,” Mr Dreibergs said.
“Now we believe it’s appropriate that police officers provide additional security at areas where we have high risk people.
“These women would have hit that threshold.”
The women will reappear before the Perth Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.
READ MORE: China threat to dump on Aussie wine traders
Simon Benson 10.30pm: Vaccine deal locked in
The Morrison government has locked in a guarantee for the Australia-wide supply of the world’s first potential COVID-19 vaccine, under a deal signed with Britain-based drug giant AstraZeneca.
Yoni Bashan 10pm: Fears of hotel security breach outbreak
Police and health officials have launched an urgent investigation to establish how a security contractor at a Sydney hotel contracted COVID-19 from a quarantined guest, prompting fears of a Melbourne-style breach that could have spread the virus across the city.
Olivia Caisley 9.30pm: ADF ‘support offered from the beginning’
There were 100 troops on standby in March to help Victoria with its mandatory hotel quarantine program.
Yoni Bashan, Olivia Caisley 9pm: No sack for Ruby panel ‘failures’
The four members of a NSW Health expert panel found to have committed ‘serious” and “inexcusable’ failures in their assessment of the Ruby Princess will keep their jobs.
Olivia Caisley 8.30pm: Release Newmarch House report now: ALP
Labor is calling on the government to release a critical review into the coronavirus outbreak at Sydney’s Newmarch House that claimed 19 lives, saying the report must be made public to assist those responding to the aged-care crisis in Victoria.
AFP 8pm: South Korea tightens restrictions to tackle surge
South Korea ordered nightclubs, museums and buffet restaurants closed and banned large gatherings in and around the capital as a burst of new coronavirus cases sparked fears of a major second wave.
The country’s “trace, test and treat” approach to curbing the virus has been held up as a global model, but it is now battling several clusters mostly linked to Protestant churches.
Authorities reported 246 new infections on Tuesday, taking South Korea’s total to 15,761, the fifth consecutive day of triple-digit increases after several weeks with numbers generally in the 30s and 40s.
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said 12 high-risk business categories, including nightclubs, karaoke bars and buffet restaurants will cease operations from Wednesday in Seoul, Incheon and the neighbouring Gyeonggi province.
All public institutions in the areas, such as museums, will also close, he added, while indoor gatherings of more than 50 people, and outdoor ones of more than 100, will also be prohibited.
Between them, the three areas account for half of South Korea’s population. If the measures fail to contain the virus, it will bring a “great impact on our economy and people’s livelihood”, the Prime Minister said.
READ MORE: China stumbled when it mattered most
AFP 7.30pm: Russian minister tests positive
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak has tested positive for the coronavirus, the Prime Minister says.
The announcement comes on the eve of a videoconference by the ministerial monitoring committee of OPEC and its allies in which Novak was due to take part.
“Unfortunately, Alexander Valentinovich Novak has been taken ill with the coronavirus”, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin told a government meeting in Blagoveshchensk, in Russia’s Far East, on Tuesday.
He said Mr Novak learned of the diagnosis after arriving in Blagoveshchensk where he was to take part in the meeting as well as the opening of a huge petro-chemical project near the Chinese border.
“He arrived and he has left for Moscow. With all our hearts, we wish him a recovery,” said Mr Mishustin, who himself was diagnosed with the virus in April but has recovered.
READ MORE: Women jailed for fleeing quarantine
Adeshola Ore 7pm: Prince Charles’ message of hope for Victoria
Prince Charles has delivered a heartfelt and poetic video message to Victorians in lockdown.
Rachel Baxendale 6.29pm: The Melbourne areas where cases have risen
Local government areas in Melbourne’s southeast and the regional centres of Geelong and Warrnambool in Victoria’s southwest have bucked the state’s trend of falling coronavirus numbers and recorded net increases in active cases on Tuesday.
Unsurprisingly the biggest falls in case numbers were in areas with huge caseloads in Melbourne’s west and north where large numbers of people are recovering from the virus.
Casey, in Mebourne’s outer southeast, recorded the largest net increase, with nine more cases than on Monday and a total of 355 active cases.
Neighbouring Frankston was next, with a net increase of six active cases to a total of 95, while the neighbouring Mornington Peninsula had a net increase of three active cases to 67.
Maroondah, in Melbourne’s outer east, has the lowest number of active cases of the 31 metropolitan LGAs, with 38, while Wyndham, in the outer southwest has the highest, with 831.
Wyndham also recorded the second-largest net decrease in active cases of any LGA, after Brimbank, in the outer west, where active cases fell by 34 to a total of 750.
Greater Geelong had a net increase of four active cases to 159, while Warrnambool had a net increase of two, to seven.
Other regional areas with more than 10 active cases include Greater Bendigo in central Victoria with 44, Colac-Otway, southwest of Geelong, with 39, Mitchell, north of Melbourne, with 31, Macedon Ranges in central Victoria with 27, Latrobe, in Gippsland in the state’s east, and Ballarat in central Victoria with 24 each, and Greater Shepparton in the state’s north with 19.
The number of active cases in regional Victoria fell by 14 on Tuesday to 422.
Active confirmed cases of COVID-19 by LGA as of Tuesday, with net increase since Monday in brackets:
Wyndham (outer southwest): 831 (-33)
Brimbank (outer west): 750 (-34)
Hume (outer north): 531 (-13)
Whittlesea (outer north): 482 (-25)
Melton (outer northwest): 467 (-13)
Moreland (north): 377 (-10)
Casey (outer southeast): 355 (+9)
Darebin (north): 294 (-1)
City of Melbourne: 278 (-10)
Moonee Valley (northwest): 219 (-5)
Maribyrnong (inner west): 214 (-16)
Greater Dandenong: (outer southeast): 206 (-5)
Hobsons Bay (inner southwest): 175 (+3)
*Greater Geelong (southwest regional Vic): 159 (+4)
Yarra (inner northeast): 136 (-8)
Kingston (southeast): 129 (-3)
Banyule (northeast): 116 (-1)
Yarra Ranges (outer east) 108 (-8)
Bayside (southeast): 106 (-1)
Frankston (outer southeast): 95 (+6)
Cardinia (outer southeast): 94 (-1)
Boroondara (east): 86 (+3)
Port Phillip (inner south): 77 (-1)
Monash (southeast): 76 (-1)
Mornington Peninsula (outer southeast): 67 (+3)
Glen Eira (east): 67
Whitehorse (east): 67 (-1)
Knox (outer east): 61 (-4)
Manningham (east): 58 (+1)
Stonnington (inner southeast): 57 (-3)
Nillumbik (outer northeast): 54 (-2)
*Greater Bendigo (central regional Vic): 44 (-3)
*Colac-Otway (western regional Vic): 39 (-3)
Maroondah (outer east): 38 (-3)
*Mitchell (central regional Vic, north of Melb): 31 (-1)
*Macedon Ranges (central regional Vic): 27 (-2)
*Latrobe (eastern regional Vic): 24 (-1)
*Ballarat (western regional Vic): 24 (-4)
*Greater Shepparton (northern regional Vic): 19 (-1)
*Warrnambool (southwest regional Vic): 7 (+2)
*Baw Baw (eastern regional Vic): 6
*Glenelg (western regional Vic): 5
*Surf Coast (southwest regional Vic): 5
*South Gippsland (eastern regional Vic): 4
*Moorabool (western regional Vic): 4 (-4)
*Bass Coast (southeast regional Vic): 3
*Horsham (western regional Vic): 3
*Mansfield (northeast regional Vic): 3
*Golden Plains (western regional Vic): 3 (-1)
*Campaspe (northern regional Vic): 2
*Murrindindi (northeast regional Vic): 2
*West Wimmera (western regional Vic): 2
*Ararat (western regional Vic): 1 (+1)
*Mount Alexander (central regional Vic): 1
*Mildura (northwest regional Vic): 1
*Central Goldfields (central regional Vic): 1
*Moyne (southwest regional Vic): 1
*Indigo (northeast regional Vic): 1
Interstate: 9
Unknown: 172 (-9)
TOTAL: 7274 (-200)
*Denotes regional Victorian LGAs
Source: Victorian Department of Health and Human Services
READ MORE: Wuhan goes from ground zero to party central
Adeshola Ore 5.55pm: Wuhan pool party ‘alarming’: concerned Kidd
Deputy Chief Health Officer Professor Michael Kidd said he was concerned to see photos overnight showing a pool party in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the former epicentre of coronavirus.
“Compared to eight months ago, we see these images, we all have a visceral reaction,” he said.
“Seeing large numbers of people coming together, large people crowded on a single space and people not sticking to physical distancing. It is quite alarming.”
“I’m not sure what the figures are for Wuhan at the moment for community transmission … but I think it’s alarming anytime we see large groups of people coming together in such a manner.”
READ MORE: Wuhan: from ground zero to party central
Rachel Baxendale 5.50pm: Aged care clusters hit 2024 active cases
The number of cases linked to the Islamic school at the centre of Victoria’s largest coronavirus cluster has increased by 19 in the 24 hours to Tuesday, more than seven weeks after the first cases at the school were made public on June 29.
There have now been 210 cases linked to Al-Taqwa College in Truganina, in Melbourne’s outer west, up from 191 on Monday.
Other significant clusters with new cases on Tuesday include:
– 207 cases have been linked to Bertocchi Smallgoods in Thomastown, in Melbourne’s north, up from 205 on Monday;
– 149 cases have been linked to JBS abattoir in Brooklyn, in Melbourne’s west, up from 145 on Monday;
– 64 cases have been linked to the Woolworths distribution centre in Mulgrave, in Melbourne’s southeast, up from 62 on Monday;
– 63 cases have been linked to the Linfox warehouse in Truganina, in Melbourne’s outer west, up from 59 on Thursday;
– 44 cases have been linked to Catholic Regional College in Sydenham, in Melbourne’s outer northwest, up from 39 last Tuesday.
– 35 cases have been linked to Hazeldene’s Chicken Farm in Bendigo, in central regional Victoria, up from 31 on Monday;
– 33 cases have been linked to Ausfresh food manufacturing in Broadmeadows, in Melbourne’s outer north, up from 31 on Monday;
The health department is also investigating cases linked to the following locations:
– The Austin Hospital in Heidelberg in Melbourne’s northeast;
– Knox Private Hospital in Wantirna in Melbourne’s outer east;
– The West End apartment construction site in West Melbourne;
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Paige Taylor 5.45pm: Women jailed for fleeing WA quarantine
Two South Australian women who landed in Perth on a flight from Adelaide on Sunday night are in jail after allegedly bolting from hotel quarantine.
READ the full story here.
Rachel Baxendale 5.30pm: Aged care clusters hit 2024 active cases
As of Tuesday, there are 2024 active cases of coronavirus across 120 Victorian aged care facilities, up from 1999 cases on Monday.
The total number of Victorian cases linked to aged care facilities since the pandemic began is 3142, including 1463 in residents, 1259 in staff, and 420 in other contacts.
This means there have been 83 new cases of coronavirus linked to aged care in the 24 hours to Tuesday, including 27 in residents, 42 in staff and 14 in other contacts.
Of Victoria’s 17 coronavirus deaths in the 24 hours to Tuesday, 13 were linked to aged care facilities.
Of the 351 coronavirus deaths in the state since the pandemic began, 230 have been linked to aged care facilities.
The largest aged care clusters include:
– 205 cases linked to Heritage Care’s Epping Gardens facility in Melbourne’s north – the same as on Monday. This includes 100 residents, 77 staff and 28 contacts;
– 190 cases linked to St Basil’s Homes for the Aged in Fawkner, in Melbourne’s north – the same as on Monday. This includes 90 residents, 74 staff and 26 contacts;
– 157 cases linked to Estia Health in Ardeer, in Melbourne’s west – the same as on Monday. This includes 50 residents, 76 staff and 31 contacts;
– 136 cases linked to BaptCare Wyndham Lodge in Werribee, in Melbourne’s outer southwest, up from 131 on Monday. This includes 60 residents, 59 staff (+6) and 17 contacts;
– 131 cases linked to Kirkbrae Presbyrterian Homes in Kilsyth, in Melbourne’s outer east, up from 130 on Monday. This includes 55 residents (+1), 51 staff and 25 contacts;
– 111 cases linked to Outlook Gardens aged care facility in Dandenong North, in Melbourne’s outer southeast, up from 107 on Monday. This includes 40 residents, 55 staff and 16 contacts (+4);
– 110 cases linked to Estia Health in Heidelberg, in Melbourne’s northeast, up from 107 on Monday. This includes 29 residents (+2), 57 staff (+1) and 24 contacts;
– 101 cases linked to Twin Parks aged care in Reservoir, in Melbourne’s north, up from 100 on Monday. This includes 65 residents (+1), 34 staff and two contacts;
– 100 cases linked to Japara Goonawarra in Sunbury, in Melbourne’s outer northwest, up from 87 on Sunday. This includes 48 residents, 38 staff and 14 contacts;
– 99 cases linked to Cumberland Manor aged care facility in Sunshine, in Melbourne’s west, up from 93 on Monday. This includes 51 residents (+6), 36 staff (+4) and 12 contacts.
As of Tuesday, there are 90 active cases of coronavirus in Victorian residential disability accommodation, up from 87 on Monday.
This includes 22 residents and 68 staff, up from 21 residents and 66 staff on Monday.
Rachel Baxendale 5.15pm: Victoria by the numbers: 390 recovered since Monday
Of Victoria’s 222 new cases on Tuesday, 54 have been linked to known outbreaks, and 168 are under investigation.
Of the 17,238 people who have had the virus in Victoria, 9413 have so far recovered — an increase of 390 since Monday.
There have been 15,848 cases in people from metropolitan Melbourne and 1033 in those from regional Victoria, as well as 8263 cases in men and 8932 in women.
The total number of cases in healthcare workers has increased by 38 to 2414 on Tuesday, but the number of active cases has decreased by 28 to 1036, due to healthcare workers recovering from the virus.
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Rachel Baxendale 4.45pm: I’m ultimately accountable for mistakes: Andrews
Asked whether he took responsibility for failures highlighted in evidence to the hotel quarantine inquiry and on last night’s Four Corners, such as a complete lack of training, PPE and infection control protocol among security guards working in his government’s bungled hotel quarantine program, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said he was ultimately accountable.
“I’m the leader of the state and the leader of the government and of course, I’m accountable for mistakes that are made,” Mr Andrews said.
“That’s not a new position of mine. I have had that position for every moment that I have had the privilege and honour of this job.
“It is as it should be, but I’m not going to comment on what’s reported on a TV program, or indeed what’s reported ongoing, because we’ve got an inquiry.
“That is their job. And that’s why they’ve been engaged to do that work. They’ll get us the answers that all of us are entitled to and I’ll be accountable for that.”
Rachel Baxendale 4.30pm: Andrews is over aged care responsibility arguments
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said he did not want to get into arguments with the federal government over responsibility for aged care, after being asked to respond to comments from federal Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck about a six-day delay in processing coronavirus tests and one of Melbourne’s worst-affected aged care facilities.
Processing of tests is the responsibility of the state government, while aged care is regulated by the federal government.
Four Corners on Monday night revealed there a six-day delay between the first positive case being detected at the Epping Gardens aged care facility in Melbourne’s north, and tests being processed for all the other residents, at least 28 of whom have since died with the virus.
“I haven’t seen Mr Colbeck’s comments, and I might be so bold as to say let’s not get into arguments with anything or anybody other than COVID-19. That would be my comment,” said Mr Andrews, who last month declared he would not want to see his own mother in some of Victoria’s private and not-for-profit aged care facilities.
“Let’s be abundantly clear about this: we’ve been asked to step in and play a role in supporting these residents. We are doing that.
“The Prime Minister has not raised those sorts of issues with me.
“I’ve been in contact with him this morning. I’ll be talking to him this evening about a whole range of different issues.
“I haven’t seen Mr Colbeck’s comments, but I would just say, that that sort of stuff is not going to keep residents safe.
“We’ve all got to work together and I think we’re at our best when we work together, and that’s why we’ve been able to bring some stability to many of these sites, not having an argument about who’s in charge, but instead just getting on and getting the job done and that won’t change.”
READ MORE: Single family second wave’s ‘patients zero’
Rachel Baxendale 4.20pm: Buying fish tank for frog among lame curfew excuses
A man more than 5km from his home who said he was on his way to buy a fish tank for his frog, and a woman out after curfew who said she was going to the shops to buy a soft drink were among 174 people fined by Victoria Police for breaching coronavirus restrictions in the 24 hours to Tuesday.
Of the 174 fines issued, 31 were $200 fines for failing to wear a face covering, and 55 were $1652 fines for breaching the 8pm to 5am curfew.
The fines came after police conducted 4,578 spot checks on homes, businesses and public spaces in the 24 hours to Tuesday, with 293,784 spot checks conducted since March 21.
Those fined included:
– A woman who was out walking in the street in Melbourne after 8pm and “stated she was going to the shops to get soft drink”;
– A man sitting around at Upfield Railway Station in Melbourne’s outer north after 8pm and not wearing a mask. Police said he could not provide a reason for being out and despite being aware of the curfew, and “stated he didn’t care”;
– A man detected reversing on the Calder Freeway to avoid a checkpoint in Melbourne’s outer northwest, who “stated he was going to a friend’s farm to help with their new baby goats;”
– A man driving erratically in a vehicle in Brimbank, in Melbourne’s outer west, who “said he was going to buy a fish tank for his frog.” Police said the man had travelled through multiple suburbs and beyond the 5km limit.
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Rachel Baxendale 4.10pm: Andrews challenged over genomic sequencing
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has been challenged on why he failed to release genomic sequencing linking what he described on June 30 as “at least a significant proportion” of Victoria’s coronavirus cases to breaches in his government’s bungled hotel quarantine system.
The question came after revelations at the board of inquiry into the issue on Tuesday morning. The inquiry, led by retired judge Jennifer Coate, heard that all of Victoria’s second wave of cases had been linked to hotel quarantine.
It also heard the genomic sequencing completed by the Doherty Institute had been commissioned by the state government’s Department of Health and Human Services.
The Andrews government had previously said the modelling belonged to the institute.
“I don’t have the sequencing. I do not have it. It is not something that I can give to you, because I don’t have it to give,” Mr Andrews said.
“The only batch (of sequencing) that I have been briefed on in any detail … is the one that prompted us, within hours (on June 30), to stand right here and say, ‘Right, this is what we believe has happened: It’s at least a significant proportion (of Victoria’s cases linked to hotel quarantine)’.
“I think we said at the time and I’ve said many times since, it could be more. That was only hours afterwards.
“I’ve got to be focused on what we’re doing right now, but I think everyone can be confident that that sequencing, those batches, that data is being provided to the inquiry.”
READ MORE: China’s CDC, built to stop pandemics, stumbled when it mattered most
Adeshola Ore 3.55pm: Kidd ‘greatly encouraged’ by Victoria
Australia’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer says he is “greatly encouraged” by Victoria’s sustained reduction in daily coronavirus cases.
The 222 new cases reported on Tuesday represent the lowest daily case number since July 18, exactly a month ago. The state also reported 17 new deaths.
“We hope we will continuing to see those continuing low levels of community transmission for Victoria,” Michael Kidd said.
“Unfortunately the tragedy of COVID-19 is that when you have high levels of community transmission, you do get deaths occurring follow one or two weeks after the high numbers we have seen.”
Dr Kidd said 682 COVID-19 patients were being treated in private and public hospitals, an additional four people from Monday. Nationwide, 52 people are in intensive care — up one person from Monday.
A total of 438 people across the country have lost their lives to COVID-19.
Dr Kidd said Australia had avoided a “double whammy of COVID-19 and influenza.”
“Thankfully between January and June of this year, there have only been 36 reported deaths from influenza in Australia compared to 430 reported deaths from the same time last year,” he said.
The low number of influence numbers was due to the record high immunisation rate, with 18 million doses of seasonal flu distributed across the country this season, compared to 13 million last year.
Physical distancing measures in place at the beginning of the pandemic had also kept flu rates low, Dr Kidd added.
He repeated the warning from NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant that people who may think they have the flu could have coronavirus.
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Rachel Baxendale 3.45pm: Andrews ‘doesn’t accept’ DHHS failed Epping Gardens
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has said he does “not accept there was not surge capacity and every effort made to provide support and care” to resident at the Epping Gardens aged care facility in Melbourne’s north, despite revelations just six staff members turned up to care for 115 residents after requests for assistance from state and federal authorities went unanswered.
Four Corners on Monday night revealed “increasingly desperate” calls from Epping Gardens management to Victoria’s Department of Health and Human Services the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission and the state and federal governments for assistance went unanswered for more than a week after the first case was detected at the facility last month.
There was also a six day delay between the first positive case being detected and tests being processed for all the other residents, at least 28 of whom have since died with the virus.
Asked how much responsibility the state government should take for the delay in assisting with staff surge capacity, Mr Andrews said: I would not accept there was not surge capacity and every effort made to provide care and support to residents who are – let’s be very clear about this — these residents have absolutely nothing to do with the public health system.”
“Hospitals, for instance, nurses, personal workers have gone in there because they have been asked to do so and they have done their level best, their level best,” Mr Andrews said of the aged care home, which is regulated by the federal government.
“In fact, I think that they should be singled out for praise.
“I am limited in what I can say – I might like to say lots on a few of the examples you have given me, but there is some legal action going there and I just don’t think a fight is necessarily what anyone needs now.”
Mr Andrews said 1972 shifts in aged care homes had been covered by hospital nurses and other staff organised by the state government following an intervention into the coronavirus-ravaged sector.
Asked whether he could guarantee there would not be a repeat of the events at Epping Gardens, Mr Andrews said: “I can’t guarantee that there won’t be outbreaks in more aged care facilities, but I think I can with some confidence say to you that we have been asked to step in and provide some help.”
“We are doing that, everyone is working together as best they possibly can and the only focus, whether it be in surge capacity workforce, so our staff going into another system, but still to get the job done, transports to hospital, all of these things are guided by only one thing, and that is the best interests, the care, and dignity of every one of the residents,” he said.
READ MORE: Why China’s CDC stumbled when it mattered most
Yoni Bashan 3.15pm: Sydney quarantine hotel security guard tests positive
A security guard at Sydney’s Marriott Hotel in Circular Quay has been diagnosed with COVID-19 after allegedly contracting it from a returned traveller undergoing two weeks of mandatory quarantine.
The traveller, returning from the United States, was confirmed positive while they were staying at the hotel. The security guard subsequently went on to work at Parramatta Local Court, Flemington Markets and Bankstown Central while infectious.
NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant said the security contractor had been working at the hotel on a number of shifts, overlapping with the stay of the positively-infected guest. Dr Chant said the contractor worked shifts over four days in early August.
It remains unclear how the transmission occurred.
“He did not work while he was infectious at the Marriott,” Dr Chant said. “The guard has been interviewed and there has been no suggestion of breaches.”
Dr Chant said a review was ongoing into how the “transmission could have occurred”. A review of CCTV footage remains an ongoing line of inquiry said NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Leanne McCusker.
“It’s very important with these types of investigations that we keep an open mind. Obviously we’re keen to understand how that could have occurred so that we can learn from that, but it’s been a very prompt response.
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Rachel Baxendale 3.05pm: 222 ‘another good number’: Sutton
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer has welcomed the state’s 222 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday as “another good number” saying he hopes the state will be “in the hundreds, not the 200s” next week.
The number is the lowest daily number of cases since July 18, exactly a month ago, and comes after a peak of 725 new cases a fortnight ago on August 5.
“We shouldn’t hang everything on a single day’s result but overall the trend is good,” Professor Brett Sutton said.
“The number of overall active cases is coming down by the hundreds each day but, it’s still a pretty big number, 7274 active cases still in Victoria.
“I do expect that to decrease by a couple of hundred every day for the rest of this week and more next week.
“I would hope that we are in the hundreds, not in the 200s, next week, but again it all depends on everyone doing the right thing, including stepping up for testing.”
Professor Sutton said people should get tested for coronavirus even with the mildest of symptoms.
“It doesn’t have to be severe high fevers, it might be a very mild temperature. It doesn’t have to be days and days of a cough, it can just be the beginning of cough. It doesn’t have to be a productive cough, it doesn’t have to be yellow or green sputum or snot. It can be the very mildest of flu or cold-like symptoms,” Professor Sutton said.
“So please, get tested if you have any of those symptoms. There can be other unusual symptoms that can be pretty classic in coronavirus, so a change in smell, a change in taste.
“If you notice with food or drink that it just doesn’t smell or taste the same that can be a sign of coronavirus as well.
“Even headache, body aches and pains can be symptoms of coronavirus infection.
“So for all of those reasons get tested, isolate at home until you get that result and do the right thing if you are a case.”
READ MORE: Wuhan: from ground zero to party central
Rachel Baxendale 2.45pm: Active cases fall by hundreds in three days
Victoria’s number of active coronavirus cases has fallen by more than 600 in the past three days as the number of people recovering from the virus each day significantly exceeds the number of new cases.
As of Tuesday there are 7274 active cases of coronavirus in Victoria – a decrease of 200 since Monday.
The number decreased by 197 on Monday, and 204 on Sunday, after increasing by 33 on Saturday.
There were smaller decreases of three, 11 and 24 on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday last week respectively.
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Rachel Baxendale 2.35pm: Thousands of cases with unknown source
Victoria has now had 3,669 cases where contact tracers have been unable to establish a source – an increase of 43 cases in the 24 hours to Tuesday.
This does not include 1058 cases which remained under investigation on Monday, and the majority of the 222 new cases on Tuesday which are yet to be linked to outbreaks.
There were 1036 active cases in health workers on Tuesday – a decrease of 28 since Monday. There were 2024 active cases in aged care on Tuesday – an increase of 25 since Monday.
Premier Daniel Andrews said these aged care cases were spread across 120 aged care facilities.
There have been 3240 cases linked to 150 aged care facilities in Victoria since the pandemic began.
There have now been 230 coronavirus deaths linked to aged care in Victoria. The state’s total death toll from the virus is 351.
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Rachel Baxendale 2pm: Victoria’s positive rate continues to drop
Victoria’s 222 new cases on Tuesday from 17,695 cases work out to a 1.25 per cent positive test rate.
This compares with a low of 0.95 per cent on August 9 from 394 cases and 41,416 tests processed, and the record of 3.73 per cent from 671 positive cases and 18,000 tests on August 2.
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Rachel Baxendale 1.45pm: Andrews says ‘concerning drop-off’ in tests
There were 17,695 COVID-19 tests processed in the 24 hours to Tuesday, bringing the total number processed since the pandemic began to 1,992,725.
This follows 15,728 tests processed in the 24 hours to Monday – the lowest number of tests processed in a 24 hour period in at least seven weeks.
This follows a record 41,416 tests processed last week on August 9.
Premier Daniel Andrews said there had been a “concerning drop off” in testing rates in recent days, with about 30,000 or 17 per cent fewer tests processed in the period from August 11 to 17, with a total of 154,432 processed, than in the previous seven day period.
“The reduction could be explained by stronger restrictions on movement, and the trend is broadly consistent across the state – however, there are more extreme examples of testing falling away,” Mr Andrews said.
“Our large scale testing sites have seen between 15 and 40 per cent drops in demand in recent weeks, even though our testing capacity has increased.
“While it is good news that people are staying home and following the restrictions, you are allowed to leave your home to get tested. Even if you’re not going to work, even if you live by yourself or with only one other person, you should still get tested if you have any symptoms of coronavirus.
“Without consistently strong testing numbers, low case numbers alone won’t give us confidence we need to begin easing restrictions.”
Mr Andrews said flu cases were down 75 per cent on the same time last year, making it more likely flu-like symptoms could be coronavirus.
READ MORE: How the ‘pandemic agency’ failed
Tessa Akerman 1.30pm: Family of four revealed as ‘patients zero’
A family of four returned overseas travellers, two of whom tested positive to COVID-19 before being moved to Rydges Hotel, are genomically the source of thousands of Victorian cases in the second wave of coronavirus.
Department of Health and Human Services epidemiologist Dr Charles Alpren told the hotel quarantine scheme inquiry it was “very highly likely” that all cases linked to the Rydges Hotel could be traced to that family.
He said genomic sequencing had been successfully performed on 4981 cases in Victoria, of which 3594 clustered genomically with Rydges associated genomic clusters.
Of cases sequenced within the past month, 3183 of the 3234 cases were linked to the Rydges associated cluster.
“I am satisfied that in my opinion it is likely that a high proportion, approximately 99 per cent of current cases of COVID-19 in Victoria have arisen from Rydges or Stamford,” Dr Alpren said.
He said approximately 90 per cent or more of the COVID-19 infections in Victoria could be traced to the Rydges Hotel.
In his witness statement, Dr Alpren said there was a high level of certainty that almost all current Victorian COVID-19 cases could be traced to the transmission events and locations relating to Rydges and Stamford Plaza Hotels.
The family of four moved into quarantine at Rydges Hotel on May 15, the day after two of the family tested positive.
The two remaining family members then tested positive on 17 and 18 of May and three staff members became symptomatic on 25 May and subsequently tested positive.
Between 26 May and 18 of June, 17 people linked to Rydges tested positive in Victoria and one household contact of a staff member tested positive in Queensland.
“All other outbreaks active when cases from the Rydges outbreak first appeared have now ceased,” Dr Alpren said.
READ MORE: Andrews sat on quarantine revelations
Matthew Denholm 1.05pm: Tasmania extends border closure
Tasmania will keep its borders shut until at least December, Premier Peter Gutwein has announced.
“To allow sufficient time for the COVID-19 situation in Victoria and the threat posted to other states to be clearly controlled, our borders will stay closed, with restrictions remaining in place until at least December 1, 2020,” he said.
“This will enable our community and our businesses to understand and prepare for border relaxations, and to ensure appropriate planning and risk mitigation processes are in place.”
Mr Gutwein has also announced a fresh round of local stimulus measures to help reduce the impact of the decision on the tourism industry.
READ MORE: Virtual convention a poor imitation
Imogen Reid 12.50pm: New Zealand virus cases jump to 69
New Zealand’s coronavirus outbreak has jumped to 69 cases after 13 new infections were recorded in the past 24 hours.
Twelve of the new infections are linked to the South Auckland cluster and one case is still under investigation.
A total of 1880 close contacts have been linked to the cluster, 98 of which are in quarantine.
Director-General of Health Ashely Bloomfield said a known positive case had visited a supermarket and primary school in Auckland.
Health authorities are also investigating a maintenance worker at a quarantine hotel who has tested positive for the virus.
Dr Bloomfield said the male worker carried out tasks in rooms at Rydges Hotel and is linked to a positive case who returned from the US and was in quarantine at the hotel since 31 July.
READ MORE: Coles profits slide
Paige Taylor 12.35pm: Royal Show among Perth cancellations
The annual Perth Royal Show – a government-run celebration of regional produce with food stalls and a fun fair – has been cancelled as the state delays easing of restrictions.
“Obviously the situation in Victoria is one we watch very closely and it is pleasing to see a recent improvement in their daily new case numbers,” WA Premier Mark McGowan said.
“We also are closely monitoring cases in other States as well – so we can better prepare ourselves for when we do have an outbreak here.
“While we have had no community transmission in Western Australia for 129 days now, we simply can’t afford to get complacent, because the virus could sneak back into WA and spread like wildfire.”
The state border remains shut except for people who meet tightened criteria for an exemption.
In June the McGowan government announced that in July it hoped to remove a 2 square metre rule for social distancing and to allow Optus Stadium to again take a full house of 60,000. Currently AFL at the stadium is played in front of a maximum crowd of 30,000.
But those changes have twice been delayed already on medical advice and now are pushed back to at least October 24.
READ MORE: Disability left out of Covid planning
Imogen Reid 12.20pm: Sydney bus drivers warn of strike over masks
Bus drivers in Sydney have threatened to walk off the job if the Premier does not make wearing a mask mandatory on public transport.
The NSW Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) penned a letter to Premier Gladys Berejiklian promising to go on strike for 48 hours from next Monday unless tougher COVID-safe measures are enforced.
“Bus drivers have been fronting up to work every day during this pandemic, despite great personal risk to themselves and their families, to keep our state moving,” NSW division secretary David Babineau said in the letter obtained by the Sydney Morning Herald.
“We’re calling on the Berejiklian government to put the needs and safety of the travelling public first.”
Around 2000 bus drivers, mainly from the Northern Beaches, north-west Sydney and the Eastern Suburbs, are planning to go on strike.
The decision is expected to cause major disruptions across the city and overwhelm other bus routes.
“We need a clear protocol for enforcing safe travelling guidelines that includes compulsory mask-wearing by passengers when there are more passengers than green dots on buses and trams, providing clarity around the enforcement of physical distancing on transport and ditching privatisation plans until this crisis is over,” Mr Babineau said.
“We have not made this decision lightly, but we have no other option. Now, for the good of the community, we are giving you notice that we cannot in good conscience continue to come to work.”
NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance said he was meeting with the union this morning and told the publication he was “hoping resolution can be reached quickly.”
READ MORE: Doubts cloud lockdown effectiveness
Rachel Baxendale 12pm: Aged care link to most of Victoria’s latest deaths
Victoria’s 222 new cases in the 24 hours to Tuesday have brought the state’s total since the pandemic began to 17,238.
The 17 deaths in the 24 hours to Tuesday include 13 linked to aged care.
Those who have died include a man in his 60s, a woman and a man in their 70s, two women and four men in their 80s, and four women and four men in their 90s.
There are 665 people in Victorian hospitals with coronavirus on Tuesday, including 45 people in intensive care.
Of these 45, 32 are on ventilators.
READ MORE: Wuhan goes from ground zero to party central
Imogen Reid 11.50am: WA again delays easing of border restrictions
WA Premier Mark McGowan has announced the government will delay the easing of its stage four restrictions for the fourth time, on the recommendation of the state’s Chief Health Officer, Andrew Robertson.
The new extension is scheduled to last until October 24.
“I understand these short extensions create uncertainty,” Mr McGowan said. “It is difficult for many people across our community and across a wide section of industries to properly plan.
“As a result, today I will be announcing a longer extension to phase four.”
Mr McGowan said his government will provide further information in October, reminding residents that the new date was a “tentative date only.”
“I know this will cause some frustration and problems for parts of our community. I can understand many people were hoping and planning for phase five to be introduced sooner,” he said. “This decision will throw these plans out.”
READ MORE: BHP takes profit hit
Imogen Reid 11.30am: Two more Sydney venues face tracing push
NSW Health has added two locations to its list of impacted venues, including a shopping centre in the city’s south-west and an inner-west market.
Anyone who attended Bankstown Central Shopping Centre on Saturday 8 August between 10am and 3pm and Sydney Market Flemington on Sunday 9 August between 8am and 4pm are considered casual contacts and are not required to self-isolate.
However, NSW Health advises those who visited the locations to “monitor for symptoms and immediately get tested and isolate if symptoms occur, however mild.”
It comes after reports emerged that a person worked at Sydney Market Flemington while infectious. The person is now in self-isolation.
READ MORE: Cochlear counts the cost
Imogen Reid 11.15am: NSW records just three new COVID-19 cases
Three new cases of coronavirus were reported in NSW overnight, bringing the state’s total number of infections to 3,770.
NSW Health said one case was excluded from the tally after further investigation.
Of the new cases, two, from south-western Sydney, were locally acquired while one is a returned traveller in hotel quarantine.
One locally acquired case has been identified as a close contact of a previously reported infection linked to the funeral gatherings cluster in Bankstown, taking the total number of cases associated with that cluster to 73.
Three new cases of #COVID19 were diagnosed in the 24 hours to 8pm last night.
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) August 18, 2020
Of the three new cases reported to 8.00pm last night:
•Two from South Western Sydney are locally acquired
•One is a returned traveller in hotel quarantine pic.twitter.com/5AvW8XPvqa
The source of infection for the other locally acquired cases is still under investigation as health authorities conduct contact tracing.
NSW Health has warned that while daily numbers are low, there are still cases whose sources have not been identified.
“There have been 16 cases in the last 4 weeks whose source is not identified or linked to clusters, mainly in Western and South Western Sydney, indicating that COVID-19 is continuing to circulate in the community undetected,” NSW Health said.
“So, if you have any cold or flu like symptoms at all, assume it’s COVID-19 until proven otherwise – isolate and get tested right away; don’t delay.”
READ MORE: Rules for local sport tightened in NSW
Rachel Baxendale 11.12am: Andrews to provide an update shortly
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews will give a press conference at 11:45am, after his state recorded its lowest number of new coronavirus cases in a month, with 222 new cases in the 24 hours to Tuesday.
Sadly, there have been 17 more coronavirus deaths in Victoria in the 24 hours to Tuesday, following a record 25 deaths in the 24 hours to Monday.
Mr Andrews’s press conference comes after the board of inquiry into his government’s bungled hotel quarantine program this morning heard that all of Victoria’s second wave of coronavirus cases (and by extension Australia’s) has been genomically linked to hotel quarantine.
It also follows a damning Four Corners report last night which highlighted a lack of training and PPE for private security guards working in hotel quarantine, as well as significant failures with Victoria’s contact tracing system.
The press conference has also been scheduled to begin shortly before a midday sitting of the upper house of state parliament, meaning people will not be able to watch both events simultaneously.
Health Minister Jenny Mikakos has said she will give verbal answers to questions during Question Time today, after refusing to do so when parliament sat a fortnight ago.
READ MORE: Grim new Victorian mark in a deadly month
Tessa Akerman 10.50am: DHHS concedes second wave came from hotels
All but 103 of all of Victoria’s 2109 genomically sequenced coronavirus cases since May 26 are linked back to an outbreak associated with the Rydges Hotel, the hotel quarantine inquiry has been told.
Department of Health and Human Services epidemiologist Dr Charles Alpren is giving evidence on Tuesday to the inquiry into Victoria’s bungled hotel quarantine scheme and has detailed in his witness statement the links between community cases of COVID-19 and cases of returned travellers at Rydges Hotel and the Stamford Hotel.
“My opinion is that there is a high level of certainty that almost all current Victorian COVID-19 cases can be traced to the transmission events and locations relating to Rydges and Stamford Plaza Hotels,” he said in his statement.
Read the full story here.
Imogen Reid 10.31pm: Thousands pictured at massive Wuhan pool party
Thousands of revellers at a massive pool party have been pictured floating in inflatable yellow rafts and standing side-by-side in Wuhan – the original epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Wuhan Maya Beach Water Park was packed at the weekend with festivalgoers who turned out in huge numbers to watch electronic DJs and performers onstage.
While local media reports the venue’s total capacity was capped at 50 per cent, the astonishing photographs show a heaving crowd paying little attention to social distancing guidelines.
The scene was a far cry from pictures taken in February where the streets of Wuhan were deserted as the city was forced into lockdown. The 76-day lockdown was later lifted in April.
There have been no new locally transmitted cases reported in the Hubei province for the past three months.
READ MORE: Shock transformation of virus epicentre
Charlie Peel 9.57am: No new cases in Queensland as PPE stockpile grows
There have been no new cases of coronavirus recorded in Queensland in the past 24 hours.
Health officials are still awaiting the results of one of four people tested for the virus in a Sunshine Coast nursing home after they displayed symptoms.
Tests for the other three returned a negative result, Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said.
Annastacia Palaszczuk said the state was still preparing for a second wave of the virus, despite the positive news.
Coronavirus (#COVID-19) case update 17/08.
— Queensland Health (@qldhealthnews) August 17, 2020
Detailed information about COVID-19 cases in Queensland can be found here: https://t.co/kapyXpSIAP pic.twitter.com/otdmfgiL8n
The premier was speaking to journalists at a stockpile of personal protective equipment in her suburban Brisbane electorate of Inala.
The warehouse, which holds 10,000 crates of PPE, is being expanded to shore up the state’s supply.
“We are doing absolutely everything we need to do in case we do have a COVID outbreak,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
“We have to plan for the future, just in case. This is our shield against COVID.”
READ MORE: Inquiry to reveal more on source of outbreak
Imogen Reid 9.48am: ‘Now is not right time for formals, graduation’
NSW Education Secretary Mark Scott has reiterated that “now is not the right time” to talk about school formals or graduation ceremonies.
“It’s tough news for year 12 students,” he told Today.
“Formals, graduation dinners, that’s part of the ritual of this time of year but the health advice is, that to gather year 12 students at dances and dinner that could be a high risk activity.”
Mr Scott said there would be nothing the department would hate more than to see large numbers of HSC students further disrupted by an outbreak of COVID-19.
“Advice is let’s not do them in term three. Let’s see where we get to at the end of the year. Now is not the right time for that kind of activity,” he said.
It comes after a number of school activities including sporting events were banned by NSW Health following the growing number of cases linked to school clusters.
READ MORE: Shock transformation of virus epicentre
Imogen Reid 8.55am: Police urge protesters to reconsider march
Queensland Police are urging protesters gathering outside Parliament House in Brisbane for a planned rally to act lawfully during the march.
Around 60 people are set to make their way towards the Immigration Department to protest the detention of 120 asylum seekers at Kangaroo Point hotel.
Queensland Deputy Police Commissioner Steve Gollschewsk made a last minute plea to protesters to consider the dangers of marching during the pandemic.
JUST IN: Protestors are gathering in Brisbane for a pro-refugee march through the CBD. #9Today pic.twitter.com/nzRqHSqWrU
— The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) August 17, 2020
“It’s not really the time or not the way I would think to try and get a message across,” Mr Gollchewski told Today.
“There are other ways. Of course, we live in a liberal democracy. These people have that right.
“We’ll make sure they are able to exercise that right lawfully but in a way that doesn’t unlawfully impact members of the community.”
READ MORE: Don’t let virus weaken our political immunity
Rachel Baxendale 8.45am: Victoria records 17 deaths, 222 new cases
Victoria has recorded 222 new cases of coronavirus and 17 people have died with the virus in the state in the 24 hours to Tuesday.
#Covid19VicData for 18 August 2020.
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) August 17, 2020
There are 222 new cases of #coronavirus (#COVID19) detected in Victoria in the last 24 hours. We are sad to report that there were 17 deaths. More information will be available later today. pic.twitter.com/xeQx3hnVJX
The 17 deaths bring the state’s death toll since the pandemic began to 351, all but 20 of which have occurred since July 4.
The 222 new cases represent the lowest daily case number since July 18, exactly a month ago.
They also bring the seven day daily average down to 307 – the lowest seven day daily average since 301 on July 20, and well down from the record of 725 new cases and a seven day daily average of 573 on August 5.
READ MORE: Ferguson: Andrews to face the blow torch in a very big way
Imogen Reid 8.30am: Inside Victoria’s quarantine nightmare
A deep dive into the state of Melbourne’s quarantine hotels has exposed the shocking conditions travellers were forced to live in – including filthy, unkempt rooms – and the dangerous practices engaged in by guards working for private security companies.
A Four Corners investigation on Monday examined the conditions of Victoria’s bungled hotel quarantine system that lead to the state’s deadly second wave of COVID-19 cases.
Christine Cocks, an oncology nurse and infection control expert who stayed at the Rydges on Swanston in April following a trip on the Greg Mortimer cruise ship, told Four Corners her room was “dirty” and that other travellers stayed in rooms with bedbugs.
“When we arrived in our room and saw the fine layer of dust across the top of the bar and the shelves there, and the dirty table, the dirty desk, across the top of the bar, we had a feeling that things might not have been as clean as we were expecting of the whole situation and that the handling might not be up to what it should have been,” she said.
“Some people had stains on their sheets. There were a couple of rooms that had bedbugs. Another person said that there were faeces in the toilet that hadn’t been flushed and urine splattered on the floor around the toilet that she had to clean.”
Ms Cocks said she was also concerned about the guards who were not wearing protective gowns and, in some instances, found sleeping on the job.
“The guards that didn’t have their gowns on would be wearing gloves and masks, but that doesn’t necessarily protect you,” she said.
“It takes a mindset and an education to understand the nuances of non-transfer of pathogens.”
The program also spoke to a guard stationed at one of the quarantine hotels who said he was shocked at the lack of training he was given before starting the job.
The guard, who spoke to Four Corners anonymously, added he felt unsafe while at work because he was not provided with a mask or protective gown and was constantly exposed to the virus as quarantine quests were shown to their rooms.
“There is not much social distancing, no proper training. I have a family waiting for me at home. I don’t want to pass this disease to them,” he said.
Two inquiries are examining the role of Melbourne’s quarantine hotels in the surge of community transmission in the state which has led to 17,027 new infections and 334 deaths.
READ MORE: On the ‘crazy floor’, people were going nuts
Imogen Reid 7.34am: Shorten calls for border ‘fast lanes’
Bill Shorten has called on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to apply some “commonsense” to hard closures in border towns, saying there should be exemptions given to those who need to travel to receive medical treatment.
“I just wonder, can’t commonsense break out,” the former leader of the opposition said on Nine’s Today.
“If there are health matters, can’t they have a special fast lane? I mean, you know, you can do that for getting on a plane.
"Why do we need guards to guard adults?" @billshortenmp has questioned the integrity of Australians in hotel quarantine flouting the rules after 99% of second wave cases were linked to the hotel scheme. #9Today pic.twitter.com/jFFCtvNHcp
— The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) August 17, 2020
“I don’t see why we couldn’t apply a bit of commonsense. The Prime Minister, he might be able to come in here and help.
“They can move people around Disneyland quickly, can’t they move people from Albury to Wodonga?”
It comes as reports revealed patients had been forced to cancel critical rounds of treatment while they wait for their travel permits to be approved.
READ MORE: Border closures trigger most business pain
Imogen Reid 7.20am: Trump wants to avoid ‘big surge like NZ’
Donald Trump says he wants to avoid a “big surge” in coronavirus cases like in New Zealand, despite the US registering the highest number of infections in the world.
The US President claimed New Zealand had “beat” the virus while addressing a crowd in Mankato, Minnesota, but said they are now dealing with a resurgence.
“You see what’s going on in New Zealand?” Mr Trump said.
“They beat if they beat, it was like front page (news) they beat it because they wanted to show me something.
“The problem is (there is a) big surge in New Zealand, you know it’s hysterical – we don’t want that.
“This is an invisible enemy, that should have never been let to come to this country, to Europe to the rest of the world by China, just remember that.”
There are now 78 active cases in New Zealand following the outbreak in Auckland last week. Since the start of the pandemic, the US has recorded more than 5,420,000 COVID-19 infections, while the total number of deaths is over 170,000.
READ MORE: Creighton: We should kiss these lockdowns goodbye
Imogen Reid 7.00am: Lebanon shuts down amid record cases
Lebanon will shut down for two weeks following a record number of new coronavirus cases as the country reels from the Beirut port explosion.
Two deaths and 456 new infections were recorded, taking the total number of cases to 9,337 since February.
The warehouse blast damaged already overwhelmed hospitals with more than 6000 wounded. The country’s health minister said the surge in cases was “shocking” as almost half of Beirut’s medical facilities were closed following the explosion.
In Sweden, a controversial thread of emails sent by the country’s chief epidemiologist has been exposed, in which he appears to ask whether a higher infection rate among older people might be acceptable if it led to herd immunity.
In one email, Anders Tegnell, the designer of the country’s lockdown response, suggested that keeping schools open would also increase herd immunity, despite being told closing schools could reduce the spread of the virus by 10 per cent.
More than 70 workers at a desserts factory in England have tested positive for COVID-19 with over 700 employees already tested at the Nottinghamshire factory.
A total of 701 workers at the company Bakkavor, which employs 1,600 people, have received testing with hundreds more to be tested in the coming days. Since the outbreak, 33 members of staff have returned to work.
Meanwhile, a government official in the Philippines has tested positive coronavirus for the second time just five months after his initial diagnosis.
Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano returned the positive test on Saturday after experiencing flu-like symptoms. Health experts are scrambling to determine whether this is a second infection, since reinfection has not yet been proven.
The country has registered a total of 160,000 deaths, the highest in Southeast Asia.
In Spain, more than 16,000 new cases have been recorded since Friday and a total of 59,162 infections confirmed in the past fortnight.
The growing figures have prompted leading public health experts to issue a warning to the government that the spike in cases could collapse the country’s health care system.
Globally, there have been more than 21.7 million people infected with the virus, while the total number of COVID-19 deaths is 776,586.
READ MORE: Property outlook grim: Triguboff
Adeshola Ore 6.10am: City of Sydney declared virus hotspot
NSW Health has declared the City of Sydney a COVID-19 hotspot in response to cases in the council’s east.
The local government area, which includes Circular Quay, is home to more than 240,000 residents. Other LGA’s labelled as hot spots included Campbelltown, Canterbury Bankstown and Cumberland.
.@NSWHealth is advising anyone who attended Sydney Market Flemington on Sunday 9 August between 8am and 4pm to be alert for symptoms of #COVID19 and if even mild symptoms occur, to get tested and isolate themselves. Read more: https://t.co/A8C1LC9StU pic.twitter.com/l7VOQX0EVM
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) August 17, 2020
On Monday night, NSW Health also issued an urgent alert after a person worked at a market in Sydney’s inner-west while infectious with COVID-19.
The person worked at Sydney Market Flemington August 9 between 8am and 4pm.
Anyone who attended during this period has been defined as a casual contact and is not required to self-isolate.
NSW reported seven new cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm on Sunday night, with six locally acquired.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian said health authorities were concerned about “potential undetected strains of coronavirus in southwest and western Sydney.”
“It means potentially the virus is continuing to spread … and that is a big concern,” she said.
READ MORE: Andrews to face blow torch in big way
Remy Varga 6.00am: Three sources to blame for 99pc of Vic cases
Private security guards were told they didn’t need to wear personal protective equipment when dealing with returned travellers as part of their training for Victoria’s disastrous hotel quarantine program that has been linked to the second wave of the virus.
Giving evidence to the inquiry into the hotel quarantine program, Lindsay Grayson, director of infectious diseases at Austin Health, said he had completed the same training model as that given to security guards and it had not included any information on PPE.
“When it came to the crucial section about PPE, there was no information other than to seek advice from your local authorities,” Professor Grayson said on Monday.
Expert testimony to the inquiry also linked more than 99 per cent of the cases in the state’s coronavirus second wave to just three clusters that emerged after most of the virus had disappeared from the community.
In other evidence, counsel appearing for a security company employed as part of the hotel quarantine program dismissed as “rumour and innuendo’’ suggestions guards had sex with guests.
The $3m inquiry overseen by former judge Jennifer Coate was told infection control training undertaken by security staff advised that mask wearing did not reduce the risk of virus transmission. Professor Grayson said he assumed the training was geared towards providing general advice to the community instead of being specifically targeted towards people working in infection control.
READ the full story here.
Geoff Chambers 5.45am: Border closures hit business hardest
Border closures are having the biggest impact on small and medium-sized businesses returning to normal trade, as new welfare data shows the number of younger Australians moving on to the dole has doubled since March.
The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s third COVID-19 business survey, polling 158 businesses between July 6 and August 7, revealed Victoria’s second wave has had a significant impact on business confidence.
The ACCI report found JobKeeper had been the most important government support measure with almost 90 per cent of respondents accessing the wage subsidy scheme, followed by the cashflow boost (50 per cent) and increase in instant asset write-off (9 per cent).
Of the government restrictions placed on business, 28 per cent said limits on interstate travel were affecting their work the most.
READ the full story here.
Tessa Akerman 5.30am: Grandad gets positive result day after death
Eighty-year-old Fotios Karamitos had a bad cough when his doctor ordered him to be tested for coronavirus on August 3.
Mr Karamitos died at home on August 7. One day after he died, on August 8, the test results came back positive.
The father and grandfather was a healthy man but had a history of heart trouble and underwent a quadruple bypass when he was younger, his son Michael Karamitos said.
“In my words we lost an individual for no reason at all,” he said.
“He had heart issues but he was fit and healthy.”
Mr Karamitos said COVID-19 caused his father to suffer an arrhythmia and pass away at home when he could have potentially lived if he had received his test results earlier and been taken to hospital.
“[It] was appalling, I thought, especially when he suffered for five days a horrific cough,” Mr Karamitos said.
“At the end of the day, we thought it was maybe just the flu … had we known that [it was coronavirus], we would have rushed him to hospital.”
READ the full story here.
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