Victoria to enter a COVID-19 lockdown as cases from Melbourne outbreak grow

[oioioi]

Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation

The Victorian government has announced a seven-day lockdown today in a bid to curb the state's growing coronavirus outbreak.

Acting Premier James Merlino said contact tracers had identified 10,000 primary and secondary contacts linked to the outbreak.

Mr Merlino said there would be only five reasons people would be allowed to leave their homes:

Food and supplies
Authorised work
Care and caregiving
Exercise for up to two hours with one other person
Getting vaccinated

Read more: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-27/victoria-covid-cases-melbourne-outbreak-lockdown-restrictions/100169172

[roamer65]

1. It's fall down under.

Unless we get vaccination rates MUCH higher, this is what is coming for us on October.

May down under is like November for us in the Northern Hemisphere.

[Skittles]

2. yes

thanks to that bullshit CDC take your mask off nonsense and the people who think that is a great idea

[paleotn]

10. Granted, but it probably wouldn't have mattered....

The states with the lowest vaccination rates have ended most precautions anyway.

[IronLionZion]

5. Summer in hot southern states might see higher numbers

as unvaccinated unmasked people get together indoors for air conditioning

[mucifer]

3. As someone from Chicago 26 cases sounds soooo much like nothing. But, I know they have

to catch it early to prevent what is still happening here. We still have over a thousand new cases every day in Illinois. But, in Australia there is only 2% fully vaccinated and we are at 40%.

[LisaL]

4. They got a highly infectious variant that is moving fast.

Incubation period appears to be shorter than from the original virus.

[orleans]

6. i thought australia was doing really good (with something like zero cases)

found on google from may 10

"Australia's Victoria on alert after first COVID-19 case in two months

Australia's second most populous state reported a locally acquired COVID-19 case for the first time in more than two months on Tuesday, sending authorities scrambling to find the source of the infection amid concern about a new outbreak.

A man in his 30s, who returned from India in mid-April and completed mandatory two-week hotel quarantine in neighbouring South Australia, tested positive for the virus after developing symptoms over the weekend, authorities said.

Health workers had interviewed the man and urged people he had been in contact with to self-isolate and get tested. They also published a list of locations exposed to the virus.

Though Australia has largely eradicated the virus with border closures, Victoria has had most of the coronavirus cases and deaths and spent much of 2020 in lockdown.

more at link
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australias-new-south-wales-reports-zero-covid-19-cases-fifth-straight-day-2021-05-11/

[LisaL]

7. They are doing well, compared to us.

They are talking about 26 covid cases. They are trying to prevent those cases from becoming a big outbreak.

[orleans]

8. they seem to have a great contact notification going

from what i've read

i don't know if we've been so great with contacts

[Yavin4]

9. The Australian government provides very robust economic relief to its citizens

which makes it easier on its population to lock everything down. That's simply not realistic here in the U.S.

Australia is being draconian here without a real reason to be. Just get everyone vacinated, and the problem will largely be solved. You cannot lock down every time a new case is discovered. That's patently absurd.

[Violet_Crumble]

11. The federal govt isn't offering any support

It did provide support initially but now its all on the state govt

The federal govt is responsible for the very slow vaccination pace and also for the failures in the quarantine system. Until they get their act together lockdowns will be needed and it's not absurd as tgey dont go into lockdown over one case, but do it when the contact tracing is showing a large number of contacts. It hurts small businesses and casual workers but no-one here wants a small outbreak to get out of control.

[Yavin4]

12. The police there were pulling people out of their cars because they were out.

That is absurd for a virus that is largely contained. People are only allowed to be outside for 2 hours. That is going way over the top especially since there is a vaccine that has proven to be effective.

People outside wearing masks have a very low risk of contracting the virus and that includes being unvaccinated.

[Violet_Crumble]

13. Well maybe people shouldn't be out if they don't need to be...

Clearly the virus isn't largely contained otherwise there wouldn't be targeted lockdowns. With only 4 new cases today things are looking good, but everyone remembers last year when there were more than 700 cases a day. If every person who decided they should be able to flit around the country regardless of whether they may be spreading the virus had their way, we'd have been as bad as the US was with its infection rates.

It's one thing to say there's a vaccine, but the reality is the federal govt has dragged their feet in getting it out there. There's still aged care facilities where the residents haven't been vaccinated. That's what's absurd, not the lockdowns. The lockdowns are a necessary evil right now and one that most people here are okay with....

[Yavin4]

14. Wow. I guess you would love living in China.

You seem okay with govt. oppression.

[Peppertoo]

15. Australia has about 2 percent of its population vaccinated

They are sitting ducks.