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Coronavirus Victoria: Latest figures show 134 new cases of COVID-19

Benita KolovosThe West Australian
Workers in personal protective equipment are seen in Melbourne this morning.
Camera IconWorkers in personal protective equipment are seen in Melbourne this morning. Credit: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

Victoria has recorded 134 new coronavirus cases, as five million people in the state prepare to enter lockdown for another six weeks.

Premier Daniel Andrews on Wednesday confirmed 11 cases were linked to known outbreaks and 123 were under investigation.

Six more cases have been linked to an outbreak at nine locked-down public housing towers in Flemington and North Melbourne, bringing the total to 75.

Almost 30,000 people were tested for coronavirus in Victoria on Tuesday, bringing the total number of tests conducted to one million since January.

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“I again thank every single Victorian who has come forward for a test and the many thousands of people who are working to take those tests and to process them,” Mr Andrews told reporters.

“We are all working as hard as we can, doing the very best that we can.”

It comes as residents in metropolitan Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire, north of the city, are preparing to go into stage three lockdown on Thursday.

Under the rules, people can only leave their homes to get food and supplies, receive or provide care, exercise, and study or work if they can’t do so from home.

More than 250 members of the Australian Defence Force will join Victoria Police in enforcing the lockdown.

Police have the power to issue on-the-spot fines of up to $1652 to individuals breaching the chief health officer’s directives.

“The window of police discretion is closing,” Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said.

“We’ve done this before in restrictions we’ve been through. People know what to do. They know what to expect.”

He said people were still acting “stupid, selfish, reckless”.

“On Sunday night we had an Airbnb party in Southbank where 15 people thought it was OK to get together and party,” Mr Patton said, noting they were all fined.

Booze bus-type checks will also be in place on main roads in and out of the city.

“It won’t be an absolute ring of steel, but there will be a significant police presence and a whole amount of those main arterial roads,” Mr Patton said.

Except for Mitchell Shire, which takes in towns including Broadford, Kilmore, Pyalong, Seymour, Tallarook and Wallan, regional Victoria is excluded from the lockdown.

Mr Andrews said the government was “looking at options to accelerate opening-up in regional Victoria”.

VICTORIA’S LATEST CORONAVIRUS NUMBERS

* 134 new cases

* Total of number of cases now 2942

* 11 new cases are linked to outbreaks

* 123 are under investigation

* 75 infections in total at the nine public housing towers in hard lockdown

* 29,424 tests done on Tuesday

OVERALL NUMBERS

* 860 active cases in the state

* 41 Victorians are in hospital including seven in intensive care

* 1,000,867 tests done since testing began

LOCKDOWN RESTRICTIONS SUPPORT AND PENALTIES

* 264 defence personnel providing logistical support to Victoria Police

* Increased police presence across all 32 local government areas entering stage three lockdown at midnight

* 810 spot checks by Victoria Police in the past 24 hours at homes, businesses and non-essential services across the state

* 6314 fines since policing of restrictions under Operation Sentinel began

* Breaches of the public health orders face on-the-spot fines of $1652 for individuals and $9913 for businesses

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