Anyone who visited a cafe at Melbourne's airport during a seven-and-a-half-hour period on Tuesday has been urged to get tested and isolate for 14 days, as Victorian authorities try to tackle a growing outbreak linked to a quarantine hotel.
Key points:
- There are now 13 people linked to Melbourne's growing Holiday Inn cluster
- All the cases are presumed to be the more infectious UK variant of coronavirus
- Jeroen Weimar says the British strain makes the cluster "more challenging"
There are now 13 cases linked to the Holiday Inn Melbourne Airport hotel, and hundreds of people have been considered close contacts.
Five of those cases were announced yesterday, and included four household primary close contacts of previous cases.
Victoria's Department of Health added Brunetti cafe, at Melbourne Airport's Terminal 4, to its list of Tier 1 exposure sites late last night.
Anyone who visited the cafe between 4:45am and 1:15pm on Tuesday has been asked to get tested and remain isolated for 14 days.
Genomic testing confirmed that the first six cases in the outbreak had the UK variant, and authorities had a "working assumption" that all cases associated with the Holiday Inn cluster were the same.
Victoria's coronavirus testing commander Jeroen Weimar yesterday said authorities were "right on the heels" of the outbreak, but said the more infectious variant made it more challenging.
"This is a bit different, it's the UK variant, we don't yet know everything about it and we have to be on our guard," Mr Weimar said.
But he said there was some cause for confidence.
"I'd say we're alert but not alarmed. We are right on top of this," he said yesterday afternoon
Melbourne Airport's Terminal 4 is a busy domestic terminal that hosts local and budget airlines, including Jetstar and Regional Express.
Jetstar said it was working with the Melbourne Airport and health authorities as investigations into the outbreak continue.
Brunetti underwent a deep clean overnight.
Scaled-back ANZAC Day commemorations
The growing cluster yesterday led the RSL to call off Melbourne's Anzac Day march for the second year in a row.
Organisers said it would not be in the public interest to hold a large event with crowds due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
Scaled-back versions of the dawn service and other commemorations will be held throughout the state.
The chief executive of RSL Victoria Jamie Twidale said there would still be a dawn and commemorative service, but the details were still being worked out.
"It matters not how we remember, only that we do," he said.
LoadingBut the Victorian Opposition said the decision to cancel the Anzac Day march in Melbourne was made prematurely.
Opposition spokesman for veterans Tim Bull said organisers should have waited longer to see if the march could be held safely.
"There may have to be some specific limitations put in around the march, around distancing, and the numbers that attend," Mr Bull said.
"But we need to assess it at the right time to make that decision, and I don't think making a decision 10 weeks out is the right time."
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMibmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvbmV3cy8yMDIxLTAyLTEyL3ZpY3RvcmlhLW1lbGJvdXJuZS1haXJwb3J0LWNhZmUtYWRkZWQtY292aWQtZXhwb3N1cmUtc2l0ZS1saXN0LzEzMTQ2MjA00gEnaHR0cHM6Ly9hbXAuYWJjLm5ldC5hdS9hcnRpY2xlLzEzMTQ2MjA0?oc=5
2021-02-11 20:04:00Z
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