Australia COVID LIVE updates Cases continue to grow across the nation as states and territories set sights on vaccination targets
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Supermarkets, chemists, petrol stations and a Westfield shopping centre throughout the NSW Central Coast and Hunter region are among venues health authorities identified as new COVID-19 exposure sites on Saturday.
NSW Health listed multiple casual contact venues attended by a confirmed case of coronavirus at Bateau Bay, Lisarow, Terrigal, Shoal Bay, Tuggerah, West Gosford and Wyong at various times during the past 10 days.
New casual contact venues have been identified on the Central Coast.Credit:
The venues are: Parts of Westfield Tuggerah, 31 Fish Terrigal, 7-Eleven Lisarow, Aldi Wyong, Ampol Foodary West Gosford, Big W Tuggerah, Newspower Tuggerah, Officeworks Tuggerah, TerryWhite Chemmart Bateau Bay Square, and Shoal Bay Pharmacy.
The time and date of exposure for each venue is listed on the NSW Health website.
Anyone who attended those venues at the time and date listed is a casual contact. They are instructed to immediately get tested and isolate until they receive a negative result, even if they had a test in recent days.
People who attended the venues of concern at those times and dates in the past four days must get tested again on day five from their date of exposure, and limit their movements until they receive a negative result.
Only about a dozen people turned up for a planned lockdown protest in Melbourne’s CBD today.
The rally, which was planned for midday, was heavily outnumbered by police officers who questioned and dispersed the handful of people who attended.
There was a large police presence in Melbourne’s CBD on Saturday.Credit:Chris Hopkins
Police were on horses in Melbourne’s CBD on Saturday.Credit:Chris Hopkins
It comes two weeks after 4000 ‘freedom’ protesters descended on the city, resulting in over 200 arrests and six police hospitalised.
Another, more widely publicised, anti-lockdown rally is planned for later this month.
It’s been a busy morning, so here are the key points you might have missed:
NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard addresses the Saturday morning COVID-19 briefing.Credit:Anna Kucera
Victorian health data revealed most of the state’s recent infections have stemmed from schools and childcare centres.Credit:
Queensland has recorded two new virus cases on Saturday, as the state keeps a watchful eye for any resurgence of the Delta strain. One of the cases was detected in hotel quarantine, and the other was a four-year-old girl already announced on Friday evening, who was a close contact of a truck driver who previously tested positive.
Victorian health authorities have identified a number of new COVID-19 exposure sites, including supermarkets and service stations.
Bostik Australia at Thomastown in Melbourne’s north was declared a tier-1 site on Monday, August 30 between 2pm and 10.30pm, and on Tuesday, August 31 between 12.30pm and 2pm.
Assetinsure at Wheelers Hill in the city’s south was declared a tier-1 site on Wednesday, August 25 between 8.30am and 6pm.
Anyone who attended either of those sites during the specified timeframes has to immediately get tested for COVID-19, and quarantine for 14 days from their exposure date, regardless of whether they receive a negative test result.
Westside Pizza Boys, Werribee, has been identified as an exposure site.Credit:
The remainder of the new sites are tier-2. Anyone who attended them during the specified timeframes has to urgently get tested for COVID-19, and isolate until they receive a negative test result.
The new tier-2 sites are:
A full list of Victorian exposure sites can be found here.
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton says he wants to see more private sector residential aged care workers vaccinated against COVID-19, in light of a staff member testing positive for the virus in Melbourne’s south-east.
A staff member at Japara Bayview Aged Care Home at Carrum Downs is among Saturday’s new local cases. Professor Sutton said 62 per cent of the staff there were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and 82 per cent had received at least one dose.
Huge lines of people wanting to get vaccinated against COVID-19 are seen at Melbourne Town Hall on Swanston Street on Friday.Credit:Paul Jeffers
“I would like to see it at a much higher rate,†Professor Sutton said during Saturday’s COVID-19 update.“The Commonwealth has responsibility for our private sector aged care staff vaccination [and we] will support it in whatever way we can.
“We’ve obviously opened up our hubs at different times for all aged care staff and we’ve really pushed for them to get vaccinated.
“We’re moving to mandating vaccination for aged care staff as well, but for anyone who’s holding out for that mandate, [we urge them to] come through when they can get protection now for themselves.
“Our public sector aged care vaccination rates are very high, in the high 80s, but ... I want it to be at the highest possible rate, that’ll be close to 100 per cent.â€
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton says he thinks it’s entirely possible the state can plateau with high vaccination coverage and a relatively lower COVID-19 caseload.
Speaking during Saturday’s COVID-19 update, he said while Victorians were all “fed up†with being stuck at home and not being able to see their friends and family, “there is really only one way to protect yourself, and that’s following the rulesâ€.
A deserted Bourke Street Mall during Melbourne’s 6th lockdown.Credit:Jason South
“There’s no question that it’s hard, [however], the alternative is too awful to contemplate,†he said.
“Tens of thousands of cases could be our reality if we don’t maintain ... those really tricky constraints on our life, [and] that’s just the awful dilemma that we’ve had right through.
“We’ve held a tsunami of cases back for 20 months. It’s come to us in waves, we’ve beaten it back in waves [and] we’ve got maybe the biggest challenge that we’ve ever faced.
“But we’ve also got a proper pathway out of here with vaccination, so hold the line in these last weeks and months until we get the high vaccination coverage that means that we can have greater confidence about seeing people ... initially outdoors, initially in those ventilated settings, and in smaller numbers, but we will get there.â€
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton has urged people in the state to take advantage of click and collect at supermarkets if they can, saying “many thousands of Victorians will shop alongside those who are not yet diagnosed with COVID-19″.
Brett Sutton has urged people in the state to take advantage of click and collect at supermarkets.Credit:Janie Barrett
He said authorities had seen transmission between people “going through the same checkout within a couple of minutesâ€, and while supermarkets weren’t inherently high-risk, they were high volume for coronavirus contacts.
“So, a reminder that it’s one member for each household, once a day,†Professor Sutton said during Saturday’s COVID-19 update.
“If you can click and collect for your shopping, please do so - go less frequently.
“Check in with the COVID-safe QR code, wear a mask and keep your distance, including when reaching over someone to get something on the shelf.
“We’ve all seen masks not worn properly and, a mask on a chin does bugger all.â€
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton has just provided a breakdown of the state’s new 190 local coronavirus cases. They are:
Professor Sutton said there had been one new case at the Japara Bayview Aged Care Home at Carrum Downs. He said 62 per cent of the staff there have been fully vaccinated, and 82 per cent have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Shepparton has detected four new cases.Credit:Eddie Jim
The positive case at the aged care facility was vaccinated.
“There’s in-reach testing being done there today and there’s a local GP to vaccinate additional residents and staff and coming days,†Professor Sutton said.
Victoria’s Minister for Industry Support and Recovery Martin Pakula has just announced another $2.34 billion in support for businesses affected by the latest COVID-19 lockdown extension.
He said that will be doled out to 175,000 businesses over a four-week period, taking the state through to the end of September.
The support package is being jointly funded by the state and Commonwealth governments.
$2.34 billion was allocated to support businesses affected by the latest COVID-19 lockdown extension.Credit:Scott McNaughton
The $2.34 billion in support will be spread across various programs, with $289 million going to the licensed hospitality venue fund in the form of grants up to $20,000 per week.
The small business COVID hardship fund is getting an additional $448 million added to it, and the grant amount under that fund will increase from $14,000 to 20,000. The number of businesses supported by that fund will also increase from 18,000 to 35,000.
Money from the new package will also go to the Alpine Support Program - another $11.2 million - as well as the business costs assistance program, which supports some 132,000 businesses.
Under that scheme, businesses generally get a grant of $2800 per week.
There are 76 people in hospital with COVID-19 in Victoria.
Of those people, 23 are in intensive care, and 14 are on a ventilator.
Victoria currently has 1301 active coronavirus cases and of them, 205 are aged between zero and nine. Another 213 are aged between 10 and 19, 316 are in their 20s, and 224 are in their 30s.
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