Coronavirus update for Victoria - 29 May 2021

Victoria was notified of seven new cases of coronavirus yesterday.

Five are locally acquired cases linked to the current outbreak.

This brings the total number of locally acquired cases in the current outbreak to 35.

There were two reported cases in returned international travellers in hotel quarantine. They are a man aged in his 30s and a woman aged in her 20s. One of the cases is an aircrew member.

There is one COVID-19 case in hospital in Victoria.

The total number of confirmed cases in Victoria since the beginning of the pandemic is 20,587.

Circuit breaker restrictions are now in force in Victoria.

You can view more than a dozen pages of questions and answers for what these restrictions mean for you at COVIDSafe Settings.

Update: Outbreaks

The five new cases linked to the City of Whittlesea and Port Melbourne Workplace outbreaks are two men aged in their 30s, a woman aged in her 40s, a woman aged in her 30s and a male child.

Extensive contact tracing continues for all the individuals who have tested positive to COVID-19 and new public exposures sites are being identified.

As of this morning, the Department had identified more than 3000 primary close contacts, of which 63 per cent have already tested negative to COVID-19.

Multiple high-risk exposure sites have been identified including grocery stores in the northern and southern suburbs and a car wash. Significant contact tracing work is underway to identify all those linked to these sites.

People in Epping, Wollert, Dandenong, Craigieburn and several nearby suburbs will receive text messages today advising them to check the Department’s website for the latest information about these exposure sites and to take appropriate public health actions.

Today, COVID-19 Commander Jeroen Weimar updated the public on progress at key sites of concern.

All tests have been returned relating to the Port Melbourne workplace exposure site, with no further positive tests recorded.

At Kidstuff Highpoint, 100 per cent of contacts have returned a negative result, with 70 to 80 per cent of negative test results returned so far for the remaining four retail shops listed as exposure sites.

The AFL, MCC and Marvel Stadium – who had prepared in multiple simulations – have been effective partners in contact tracing efforts, providing ticketing information instantly and CCTV footage to further investigate the movements of two positive cases attending football games.

While the bulk of the affected stands were published as Tier 2 exposure sites, the people sitting in the immediate vicinity of those cases were treated as Tier 1 Primary Close Contacts.

70 per cent of these contacts at the MCG have to date returned a negative result, and 75 per cent at Marvel Stadium. The remaining test results have not yet been received.

Yesterday, the Department advised of five high-risk exposure sites at nightclubs and bars:

• Three Monkeys Prahran
• Somewhere Bar Prahran
• The Sporting Globe in Mordialloc
• The Palace Hotel in South Melbourne
• The Local, Port Melbourne

For these five sites, the Department now identifies 506 Primary Close Contacts, and we thank everyone who has come forward in the last 24 hours. Results were received for 17 per cent of these contacts as of this morning.

There are now more than 150 public exposure sites in Victoria published at Case alerts - public exposure sites.

New exposure sites are being added to the website as interviews are conducted with positive cases.

It is important that Victorians review this webpage regularly and if they have been at an exposure site on the listed dates and times, they must isolate, get tested and contact the Department of Health.

Close contacts are also contacted by public health officials as they are identified and provided with instructions to isolate and get tested.

The Department is continuing to publish exposure sites online at Case alerts - public exposure sites.

We are grateful at the number of people who are checking in on this website regularly – because exposure sites are added throughout the day once investigations are finalised and details can change based on new information and intelligence at hand.

The Department also manages a number of exposure sites which it doesn’t publish online, particularly if these sites represent lower-risk exposures, or if they have comprehensive record keeping and contact tracing measures in place, or if they identify small, private locations.

This includes a school – Mount Ridley College in Craigieburn – and an early learning centre linked to positive cases announced today.

The Department of Education and Training is working closely with the school, and the Principal has written to the school community.

If you are part of this school community, the Department will contact you if there are any actions you need to take beyond getting tested if you have symptoms.

The Department also thanks Coles for its cooperation in contact tracing and testing efforts regarding a lower-risk Tier 2 exposure site at Coles Tooronga Village on 23 May. This is now being published online out of an abundance of caution.

The Department is also upgrading a Tier 2 exposure site in Mickleham (Botanical Display Homes, Botanical Display Village, 23-25 Poppy St, Mickleham) to a Tier 1 site as it investigates likely transmission inside this site.

The Department had already worked with the company to ensure all contacts were getting tested and isolating – and these contacts will now be required to stay in isolation for 14 days following their exposure.

Update: Record day at testing sites and vaccination centres

For the first time in Victoria, the number of COVID-19 tests processed in a single day surpassed 50,000, and the number of vaccine doses administered surpassed 20,000.

A total of 56,624 tests were processed yesterday.

21,626 COVID-19 vaccination doses were administered yesterday by state commissioned services across Victoria.

This brings the total number of vaccine doses administered by the Department as of yesterday to 445,158.

There are now 207 testing centres and more than 30 open-access vaccination centres operating in Victoria.

The Department is publishing expected wait times at testing sites as well as updated information about locations and hours of operation at Where to get tested.

Wait times for walk-up appointments at vaccination centres are also published at Vaccination centres.

Public health actions around reported positive COVID-19 case on a ship

Public health actions were implemented yesterday in response to a reported positive case on an oil tanker that docked at the Port of Hastings.

A crew member of the ship MT Magellan Endeavour tested weak positive to COVID-19 while the vessel was overseas, and that positive result was notified to authorities while the ship on route to Australia. Three other crew members were also displaying mild COVID-19 symptoms.

The ship docked at the Port of Hastings at 9am on Friday and was met by public health officials. All 23 crew members, including the positive case, were re-tested and all returned negative results.

The Department worked closely with transport and maritime authorities to allow this vessel to dock safely and offload its cargo.

General advice

Coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms include fever, sore throat, cough, shortness of breath and loss or change in sense of smell or taste. If you are experiencing symptoms, wear a fitted face mask when you get tested.

For more information call the 24-hour Coronavirus Hotline at1800 675 398 or visit the Coronavirus website.

Latest statewide numbers (data reported to 11:59pm yesterday):