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SYDNEY: The state of Victoria, Australia’s COVID-19 hotspot, delayed Sunday (October 25) the long-awaited removal of strict closure restrictions for cafes, restaurants and pubs in the capital Melbourne due to an outbreak in the northern suburbs.
The restrictions have kept most retail companies in Melbourne providing online services since the beginning of August alone and 5 million people living with stay-at-home orders were expecting an announcement on Sunday.
State Prime Minister Daniel Andrews told a news conference that the outbreak would likely delay the reopening of retail and hotel businesses by a few days, as officials preferred to wait for hundreds of test results.
He had planned to announce that some restrictions would be lifted from midweek, but preferred to wait until there is more clarity on whether all known infections and positive cases expected from tests were linked, Andrews said.
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“We will get (the test results) today and tomorrow and hopefully we will be able to make, not just announcements, but also safely take the big steps by the middle of this week.”
The federal government and industry leaders have been increasingly pushing Andrews to reopen the city and state.
“We cannot go on like this,” said Australian Business Council Executive Director Jennifer Westacott in a statement.
“Victorians can’t hold out week after week. People are at a financial and mental breaking point.”
Health Minister Greg Hunt said Victoria was ready to ease the restrictions and described any delay as “deeply disappointing.”
“On the balance of evidence and risk, Victoria stands strong enough to replicate what has happened in New South Wales (NSW),” Hunt told reporters, referring to the country’s largest state that it had reopened its economy.
On Sunday, New South Wales will host the largest public gathering since the pandemic began, a rugby game with 40,000 attendees.
NSW and Victoria found seven new COVID-19 cases each in the previous 24 hours. Six of the new cases in Victoria were related to the outbreak in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, which has now spread to 11 households.
Victoria’s 14-day moving average of new cases fell to 4.6, below the threshold of five that Andrews had previously set for the next band of restrictions to be lifted.
Australia has recorded nearly 27,500 infections and more than 900 deaths, a fraction of those in some other countries. Victoria accounts for more than 90 percent of the lives lost to the virus.
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