Victoria records one death 535 new COVID cases as picnics and protests return to Melbourne
A woman in her 70s from Shepparton has become the ninth death in Victoria’s third wave, as the number of Victorians in hospital continues to rise.
Health Minister Martin Foley said there were now 207 people in hospital with the virus: 87 per cent were not vaccinated at all while the remainder were partially vaccinated.
But in good news, there was another record number of vaccines delivered through the state-run vaccination centres yesterday, where there were more than 45,500 jabs administered.
It takes Victoria past the 70 per cent mark for the population aged 16 and over, who have had at least one dose of a COVID vaccine.
Victoria recorded 535 locally acquired cases of COVID on Saturday, the highest number since near the peak of the state’s second wave in August last year.
Of the new cases recorded in the 24 hours to midnight on Friday, 62 have so far been linked to known clusters, according to Victoria’s health department.
More than 45,537 vaccine doses were administered in Victoria on Friday and an impressive 61,622 tests were processed.
The northern suburbs of Melbourne continues to report the highest number of infections, but there is spread throughout the state, and new cases in the regions are posing a concern to authorities.
Department of Health deputy secretary Kate Matson said there were 15 cases in regional Victoria including:
The northern suburbs has reported 295 new cases, but at 55 per cent of the total cases, this is a lower proportion of cases overall that’s been reported at other times in the outbreak.
There have been another 183 cases reported in the western suburbs, including Hoppers Crossing and Truganina.
From Saturday, fully vaccinated Melburnians can meet up outdoors with one other household in groups of up to five adults plus dependents. The five-kilometre restriction on movement from the home has also been widened to 10 kilometres.
Outdoor gyms and skate parks have also been reopened, with Melburnians now allowed to exercise for four hours per day, instead of two.
Public transport into the city has also been restricted to prevent anti-lockdown protesters from travelling into the city on Saturday.
Trains, trams and buses will not run to the CBD from 8am until 2pm, with thousands of police preparing to stop people from gathering. Checkpoints have also been set up to restrict movement by car.
Two new tier-1 venues were added on Friday night to the health department’s swelling list of exposure sites in Daylesford, in central Victoria, and Kilsyth, in Melbourne’s east.
Anyone who visited the Lake House Hotel in Daylesford from 1.15pm on September 11 until 1.45am on September 12 is being asked to get tested and isolate for 14 days.
The same applies for anyone who was at the Gladesville Primary School in Kilsyth from 7am to 9.30am on September 7 and 2.30pm to 6.30pm on September 10.
Crowds could also return to Melbourne sporting events by November, with the government intending to implement a “no jab, no entry†policy for people going to major events, restaurants or pubs as part of the state’s road map to reopening.
Victorian government officials have told industry stakeholders of the government’s intention to force visitors and staff at hospitality venues and major events to be fully vaccinated, according to two sources not authorised to speak publicly about the briefings.
The government has said that it will release its road map for easing restrictions based on vaccination targets on Sunday.
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Tom Cowie is a senior journalist at The Sunday Age. You can contact him at tom.cowie@theage.com.au or via secure email tomcowie@protonmail.comConnect via Twitter or email.
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