Covid Victoria: Melbourne families in quarantine as NSW cluster spreads

New exposure sites have been identified in Melbourne after two Sydney COVID-positive removalists travelled to Victoria while infectious.

Ariele Apartments in Thomas Holmes St, Maribyrnong was identified as a Tier 1 exposure site for the period of July 8 to July 12.

Anyone who was there over those five days in the residential part of the building, which includes the residential foyer, stairwells, lift, residential floors and carpark, must get tested immediately and isolate for 14 days.

Coles Craigieburn Central was listed as Tier 1 exposure site, for the period of 5.28pm – 6.38pm on July 10.

Metro Petroleum Broadmeadows was identified as a Tier 2 exposure site for the period of 1.19pm – 2.04pm on July 11. Anyone who was there during that period must get tested and isolate until they receive a negative result.

Craigieburn Central shopping centre was identified as a Tier 3 exposure site for the period of 5.28pm – 6.38pm on July 10. People who were at the shopping centre then were warned to monitor for symptoms.

The new exposure sites were added on Monday night.

Melbourne is on high alert for Covid after more new virus incursions from NSW were revealed on Monday afternoon.

Of three removalists who entered Victoria from Greater Sydney, two have so far tested positive, Covid commander Jeroen Weimar revealed.

The trio arrived in Melbourne on July 8 to deliver furniture to a four-person household in Craigieburn, before visiting another four-person household in Maribyrnong.

Both households remain in isolation and are awaiting test results.

The removalists stayed in Melbourne overnight, claiming to have slept in their vehicle cabin, before leaving the state for South Australia on July 9, where a member of the crew was told they were primary close contact of an infected person in NSW.

Authorities have revealed ongoing interviews with the men are proving “complex and challenging” with the Department of Health forced to examine fuel cards and logbooks to confirm their movements.

“We’re getting slightly different messages from the individuals about exactly what they did,” Covid-19 commander Jeroen Weimar said.

“We’re seeking to validate the nature of their business and exactly the weight of their travel, and whether they complied with those restrictions contained in that permit.”

Meanwhile, two members of a family of four from the City of Hume have tested positive.

Three members arrived by plane on July 4, while the fourth household member arrived by car July 8.

They have all been in isolation under a red zone permit.

“They all tested negative initially. This highlights the importance of the red zone … all members of the family were tested shortly after their arrival, and tested negative,” Mr Weimar said.

“They continued their isolation. Two members of the family became symptomatic, were tested yesterday.

“We received their results late morning today, they’re both positive. The other two members of the family will be tested again today.”

Authorities are confident the family members who travelled by air were not infectious on the plane.

Health Minister Martin Foley warned Victorians to expect new exposure sites to be listed.

“The deteriorating situation in New South Wales needs to be kept as far away from the hard work that Victorian communities have made,” he said.

The minister also said it’s “too soon to say” whether Victoria faces any more restrictions due to the latest scare.

It comes as NSW announced 112 new infections on Monday.

Of those, 64 were linked to a known case or cluster with 41 coming from household contacts and 23 from close contacts.

But an alarming 48 mystery cases remain under investigation – making 96 cases currently unlinked to a cluster.

“That’s a big number, particularly for the Delta variant,” Mr Foley said.

“These are challenging times for our friends in New South Wales.”

Sydney’s lockdown is meant to end on Friday, but Premier Gladys Berejiklian has declared that outcome “almost impossible”.

As the situation in NSW worsened, Victorian authorities once again hit out at the commonwealth government.

Acting Premier James Merlino said he welcomed the federal government’s financial support “for New South Wales, for its citizens and its businesses”.

But he said he was disappointed that Victoria had to fight so hard for “scraps”.

“I would make the point we had to fight so damn hard for what we did get,” Mr Merlino said.

“It was a disgraceful position that they had initially.”

He also said the state government would attempt to secure its own jabs from Pfizer if allowed,

stating the federal government had “dropped the ball” when it came to ensuring supply.

“If sub-national governments could secure vaccines, believe me, we would,” Mr Merlino said.

BORDER SLAMMED SHUT AT MIDNIGHT

The border was shut to NSW and the ACT at midnight and could remain closed for weeks amid a growing Covid outbreak.

The drastic measure – now in force – means anyone returning from NSW must get tested and isolate for 14 days.

But border confusion had already begun with travellers from NSW safe zones who’d tested negative days ago mistakenly told they must now quarantine for a fortnight.

The nation’s chief medical officer has weighed in, declaring the commonwealth did not support a hard border closure.

The border chaos comes as Victoria’s run of no locally-acquired cases continued with no new cases of coronavirus – in the community or in hotel quarantine – detected in the past 24 hours.

More than 19,000 tests were carried out across the state and 12,000 vaccine doses were administered.

There are 19 active cases in Victoria.

Victoria’s hard border move — which made all of NSW and the ACT a red zone from midnight — followed calls for holiday-makers to return home.

Sydney was on Monday bracing for more than 100 new coronavirus cases after the worsening crisis turned deadly.

Daniel Andrews urged anyone trying to enter Victoria to follow the rules. Those who do not will face fines of up to $5000 and will be flown home after being put in hotel quarantine.

“We do not want this virus here in our state and everyone has a part to play in protecting our Victorian community,’’ the Premier said. “If you do the wrong thing you will be found, you will be fined and you have every chance of becoming very, very famous.”

Acting chief health officer Deb Friedman said NSW’s worsening Covid situation left authorities with no option. The state on Sunday recorded 77 new cases while a 90-year-old Sydney woman who got the virus from family died.

“With case numbers continuing to increase in NSW, Victorian public health authorities are concerned about the risks of transmission beyond current red zones in Greater Sydney and surrounds, and the potential risks this poses to the Victorian community from people entering our state,” she said.

Teething problems even before the border shutdown raised questions about whether Victoria’s permit system could cope with the demand.

Traveller Peter Brereton, who lives in regional NSW, was early on Friday granted entry to Victoria with his wife after her mother died.

But despite having isolated until they received negative tests, the pair was on Sunday sent a text message saying they must re-enter isolation for 14 days.

“It really does demonstrate the incompetence. They can’t align their ducks,” he said.

Victoria’s Health Department said the incident was isolated but it would investigate.

Border bubbles will be in place so locals can move freely under the border shutdown.

Australia’s chief medical officer, Paul Kelly, said the commonwealth did not agree with a hard border closure.

“We do not support it,” he said. “But we can understand — they want to make sure that they are protected.”

State Nationals MP Peter Walsh, based at Echuca, called the closure “hasty”.

“I know people in NSW don’t vote in our elections, but all our border communities rely heavily on each half being economically viable; and Daniel Andrews has just pronounced a punishment that simply does not fit the crime,” Mr Walsh said.

“And it’s nowhere near good enough to say the bubble still functions; the economy needs to access all Victoria, not just a strip along the river.”

Jocelyn Robinson of Mulwala said it was a devastating blow. “Border communities are suffering again and it’s not fair,” she said. “We went through this last year with the situation in Melbourne and now we’re being punished for what’s happening hundreds of kilometres from us.”

Wodonga Mayor Kev Poulton said anxiety among residents had been building but reinstatement of a border bubble was welcome.

“The community would like to see number plate checking rather than a hard checkpoint this time. The closures really do split the city,” he said.

The border closure came as Covid vaccine task force co-ordinator Lieutenant General John Frewen was forced to defend the federal government’s new ‘Arm Yourself’ vaccine campaign after opposition leader Anthony Albanese said the new ads didn’t cut it.

Almost 9.1 million Covid-19 doses have been administered nationwide, and Victoria has given the most shots – more than 1.2 million.

— Additional reporting: Miles Proust, Jade Gailberger, Brayden May