Coronavirus: outbreaks will keep coming, says Daniel Andrews

Premier Daniel Andrews says it is unlikely the coronavirus will ever be completely extinguished as he extended the state-of-emergency declaration for four weeks.

Family members arrive to visit a loved one at Doutta Galla Aged Services in Yarraville Village, Melbourne on Sunday. Picture: David Geraghty

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says it is unlikely the coronavirus will ever be completely extinguished as he extended the state-of-emergency declaration for four weeks.

The state’s chief health officer also flagged “baseline behavioural change” would be required by Victorians and businesses as the state headed into a new COVID-19 normal.

It came as Victoria’s coronavirus toll rose to 309 on Sunday with 16 new deaths recorded, 11 of which were linked to aged care.

Fronting reporters on Sunday, Mr Andrews said he expected Victoria would still see new cases after the second wave ended.

“Even when this second wave is over, we will see cases, we will see outbreaks, that’s just a function of this thing,” he said.

“The notion of completely ­extinguishing it and never seeing it again, I think that would be an unlikely outcome.”

The state-of-emergency declaration will be extended by four weeks until September 14, with Mr Andrews saying the number of mystery cases had increased by 95, bringing the total to 3478.

Healthcare workers exchange medical paperwork. Picture: Sarah Matray

The total number of active cases in Victoria rose by 279, bringing the total to 7671.

Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said he thought it unlikely a vaccination against the coronavirus would be available within six months. “I hope that it‘s not 12 to 18 months, but we have to prepare ourselves for the long haul,” he said.

Some precautions against COVID-19, such as mask wearing and maintaining a 1.5m distance, had become part of our behaviour, he said. “I think there are some things that are now clearly embedded in our psyche … these are the things that are going to start to embed behaviourally in our lives.”

The number of cases linked to the aged care sector rose by 34 on Sunday, bringing the total to 2075, including 205 cases at Epping Gardens Aged Care in Epping and 190 cases at St Basil’s Homes for the Aged in Fawkner.

There are 1164 active cases among healthcare workers, a decrease of 14 from Saturday.

On Sunday, Mr Sutton said it was not yet known what the rules governing the new COVID-19 normal would be, but he said any future response to the virus would require agility.

“The critical element is there’ll need to be some baseline behavioural change for everyone across the board, for businesses across the board,” he said.

“The way that they implement systemic changes to mitigate that risk and for every single individual to change the way they go about interactions for others.”

Metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire has been under stage 4 restrictions since ­August 2, which was introduced after three weeks of stage 3 restrictions.

The state has been bleeding jobs since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, with an estimated 250,000 additional positions lost under stage 4 after the introduction of strict restrictions on industries such as meat and construction.

AUSMAT personnel gather outside Doutta Galla Aged Services. Picture: Sarah Matray

Australian Industry Group chief executive Innes Willox said it was well understood the stage 4 lockdown, which began on August 2, was introduced for health reasons, but businesses needed guidance as soon as possible.

“We can’t keep going in a lockdown for a prolonged period without inflicting massive economic and social damage on ourselves,” he said.

“Nor can we come out of a lockdown, start up again and then shut back down …. That would be perhaps even more catastrophic.”

There was an increase of nine cases in regional Victoria, which is under stage 3 restrictions, bringing the total to 1006.