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Victoria will be on Friday from 23. 59 a.m. to close its border with New South Wales to contain an NSW-related outbreak in Melbourne that has grown to eight cases.
Acting Prime Minister Jacinta Allan said the decision was made regarding health advice after NSW recorded 10 more COVID-19 cases today.
« This is not an easy decision, closing borders and introducing restrictions is never an easy decision and certainly not one that we wanted to make and announce on a day that will probably be about partying, » said she said.
Ms. Allan said there have now been eight coronavirus cases related to an outbreak that Contact Tracers believe may have occurred on Jan.. December began when someone who had returned from NSW was dining at a restaurant in Black Rock, southeast Melbourne.
She urged the Victorians still living in NSW, before the border closes on Friday at 23. 59 o’clock to return home.
Those who arrive within 24 hours of the border closes still have to take a test and be quarantined for 14 days, she said.
« Obviously this will cause disruption for Victorians who may be vacationing, » Ms. Allan said.
« We apologize for disturbing you, but like I said, these tough decisions are about protecting our community. «
She said Victorians who returned from NSW after the border was closed must go to hotel quarantine.
People from the Blue Mountains and Wollongong are allowed to. No longer enter Victoria from midnight on January 1st.
Individuals who have previously traveled from these areas must apply for a new permit, be tested within 24 hours of arriving in Victoria, and quarantined at home for 14 days after leaving the relevant regions in New South Wales.
Victoria’s border is already closed to the Northern Beaches, Greater Sydney and NSW Central Coast regions.
Previously, the government announced new coronavirus restrictions starting at 5:00 p.m. tonight, restricting private house gatherings to 15 visitors and making the use of masks indoors mandatory.
Ms. Allan said that people who had New Year’s Eve meetings scheduled for tonight should reduce their number based on the existing limit of 30 guests.
According to the applicable regulations, relatives are counted among the 15 household visitors, provided they are not younger than one year.
Masks are compulsory for Victorians when they are outside their own home after 5:00 p.m., except when they are eating or drinking.
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« We definitely apologize to people who made plans and looked forward to events . . . but this is a necessary step based on the advice we received overnight, « she said.
Ms. Allan said the only people scheduled to travel to Melbourne’s business district on New Year’s Eve were those who had already made hotel reservations.
The announcement comes after Melbourne health officials registered three new coronavirus cases yesterday, ending the state’s 61-day streak of zero locally acquired cases.
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) COVID-19 Commander Jeroen Weimar said these three cases did the right thing by reporting and being tested as soon as symptoms appeared, so authorities should Could discover clusters.
« We currently have 52 close contacts from these three people, » he said. Ms. Allan later said she had grown to 70 close contacts in quarantine by the afternoon.
« These close ties exist across much of Melbourne … and include people in Leongatha and Barwon Heads. «
He confirmed that contact tracers would reach the contacts of these close contacts today and ask them to be tested and quarantined for 14 days.
Ms. Allan said all of yesterday’s cases had either a direct or indirect link to Smile Buffalo Thai restaurant in Black Rock on Jan.. December had.
« One that evening, one case, and two close ties of cases visited this restaurant, as did a returning traveler from New South Wales, » she said.
The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) periodically updates a list of websites with public exposure on its website, which so far includes:
DHHS has stated that anyone who has visited any of the locations at the stated times must be tested and isolated until they get a negative result.
Although the Royal Brighton Yacht Club is not listed as an official public website, it said it closed for a thorough cleaning after learning that a confirmed case was on Jan.. December had visited his restaurant between 12:00 and 14:00.
« We can confirm from DHHS that the confirmed case was outside, did not use the club toilets, or did not visit any other area of the club, » the club said.
This service may contain material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service that is copyrighted and cannot be reproduced.
AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time, 10 hours before GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
Victoria, Coronavirus, New South Wales, Australia, Melbourne
World news – AU – Victoria will close its border with NSW on Friday from 11:59 p.m.
Ref: https://www.abc.net.au
