'Far from over': Alarming spike in infections after new coronavirus cluster emerges
Twenty-two new cases have been confirmed in Victoria on Monday, prompting Premier Daniel Andrews to warn the coronavirus outbreak in the state is “far from over”.
Nineteen of those cases were from the meatworks outbreak in Melbourne, however Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton moved on Monday morning to reassure there was no threat to the community from the outbreak.
"All of them will have been in quarantine at the time they've been identified, so it's not a risk to the general community and it's not going to get out of control," he said.
The facility, which has not been named by authorities but identified by its general manager as Cedar Meats in Melbourne’s west, has been shut down.
Coronavirus live blog: The latest from Australia
Mr Sutton said the majority of the cases were “asymptomatic” and were discovered after full testing of the facility’s staff.
Facing questioning on why the meatworks was not initially closed down after the first case was confirmed, he said “logistical constraints” prevented them from doing so, most notably due to animal welfare issues.
Don’t succumb to frustration, Andrews warns
Mr Andrews, who has so far arguably been the most cautious of all premiers in terms of lifting restrictions, stressed Victorians must continue to adhere to restrictions to prevent further spikes in cases.
"None of us can assume just because we're frustrated that this is over. It is far from over,” he said.
“We have to stay the course."
Mr Andrews has routinely said he will wait until May 11, aligned with the federal government’s decision, to make decisions on easing restrictions despite other states and territories easing elements of their restrictions.
On Friday, Scott Morrison announced he had brought that decision forward to this Friday due to the hard work of Australians around the country.
"In choosing which of those rules to relax in a week or so we need to make sure we get this right," Mr Andrews said.
"We don't want to have a cycle, if you like, where we achieve good results, we let some of these rules go too fast and in a month have to impose even tougher restrictions. That will not help the economy, that will not help any family across Victoria."
Victoria breaks record in testing blitz
Despite the spike in cases taking the state’s total up to 1406, Mr Andrews said he was overwhelmed with the state’s response to a call for more testing, recording 13,000 tests on Sunday alone.
"More than we've seen on a single day in any part of the country throughout this whole pandemic," he said.
"I can't emphasise enough how pleased, how proud and how grateful I am."
Victoria has now performed 56,000 tests at the halfway point of a two-week blitz where the state aims for 100,000 overall tests.
Ramped up testing was one of Scott Morrison’s main goals in order to be able to relax coronavirus restrictions this week, and Mr Andrews said such a push now gives the government “options”.
"If you have not been tested and you have even the mildest of symptoms, please get tested," he urged.
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