'Melbourne will be like Sydney': Daniel Andrews' stern warning
Victoria is facing its biggest battle since the state's second wave, having recorded 55 new local Covid-19 cases, 30 of which have been in the community while infectious.
Premier Daniel Andrews described Friday as a "bad day" and issued a stern warning to residents after revealing six cases are unlinked, and are a mystery at this stage.
He urged people to abide by lockdown restrictions so the state can avoid turning out like Sydney.
"It's all of us playing a part in avoiding what Sydney is going through at the moment. We don't want that here. We've had it before, but not with Delta," he said.
"And if we get it again, it will mean that kids will get this, people of all ages will get this. People who are fit and healthy will finish up in hospital. And people will die," he said.
Mr Andrews said that if as many residents are seen out in the community this weekend as they were last weekend, Melbourne "will be like Sydney".
“Simple as that. This will get away from us,” he said, adding that the state is “on the edge”.
Last week saw a spate of breaches including an organised takeaway pub crawl in Richmond, and an engagement party in Caulfield North attended by 69 guests.
State government ministers and the public health team will meet on Friday afternoon to determine whether restrictions will need to be tightened further.
Police officer among new Covid cases
A police officer and a resident in the regional city of Shepparton are among 55 new locally acquired cases.
Two overseas-acquired cases were also detected in hotel quarantine, taking the total number of infections recorded in the state to 57 for the second day in a row.
It's expected some of the 55 new infections are the result of day-13 testing of some 2000 people who have been self-isolating after coming into contact with a positive case.
Among the new infections is a police officer based at Knox station, in Melbourne's eastern suburbs.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman told AAP the office will be professionally cleaned, and police and support staff will be asked not to attend during this time.
With AAP
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