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Covid Victoria: 24 new cases, fears virus spreading undetected

Victoria has recorded 24 new locally acquired Covid-19 cases as health authorities remain concerned the virus is spreading undetected in Melbourne's south.

The Department of Health revealed six of the new cases announced on Wednesday morning have been infectious in the community while four are unlinked to existing cases.

It is the fifth consecutive day daily cases have been above 20.

Fears unknown transmission occurring in Melbourne's south

Health authorities are concerned over possible unknown transmission in the community, with five mystery cases in the St Kilda area raising alarm bells.

The cases have resulted in more than 50 exposure sites stretching from South Melbourne to Brighton.

"These cases aren't linked by age, they're not linked by faith, they aren't all in the same book club, they're not all on the same footy club," Victoria's Health Department deputy secretary Kate Matson told reporters on Tuesday.

Authorities say Melbourne's outbreak sits on a knife edge, with cases over the past week lingering in the low 20s. Source: Getty
Authorities say Melbourne's outbreak sits on a knife edge, with cases over the past week lingering in the low 20s. Source: Getty

"The only thing they share is geographic proximity, they might live or work in the city of Glen Eira, or the city of Port Phillip.

"We haven't found one area of those mystery cases all being in one place."

She urged anyone with Covid-19 symptoms in the Bayside, Glen Eira and Port Phillip areas to come forward for testing.

On Tuesday the number of infections linked to an illegal engagement party in Caulfield North rose to six.

Melburnians woke on Wednesday from their first full night of curfew where residents are not allowed out of their homes between 9pm and 5am.

Police union at odds with chief health officer over new restrictions

Police Association Victoria Secretary Wayne Gatt expressed concern about the lasting effect of enforcing "unpopular and deeply restrictive rules for a prolonged period" on community views of the force after transmission at playgrounds resulted in their closure.

"Police are now tasked with enforcing a curfew that no one has welcomed, and to prevent families from going to playgrounds that bring them joy," he wrote in an opinion piece published in the Herald Sun on Wednesday.

"I hope that our members do not have to ever actively enforce this ban on playgrounds."

About 50 children in the state aged 10 and under are fighting the virus, including a child in intensive care who is in a stable condition.

Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said his team was probing a potential case of playground transmission, along with a "more definitive" link between students from different classes who walked home together.

With AAP

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