Victoria confirmed 723 new cases of coronavirus and 13 deaths

All Victorians will be required to wear face coverings from midnight Sunday, after the state confirmed record numbers of new cases and deaths overnight.

Key points:
Today’s increase surpasses Victoria’s previous record increase by more than 190 cases
Victoria has now recorded a total of 9,998 cases since the pandemic began
Medical specialists from interstate are arriving in Victoria today to help the state deal with outbreaks in aged care
Victoria has confirmed a further 723 new cases of coronavirus and 13 deaths, Australia’s highest daily totals since the pandemic started.

Premier Daniel Andrews said the people who died were in their 70s, 80s and 90s.

He said 10 of those 13 deaths could be connected to aged care settings, but said more work was needed to confirm the exact number.

There are now 312 Victorians with coronavirus in hospital, including 34 in intensive care.

From midnight Sunday all Victorians, including those in regional areas, will be required to wear face coverings when they leave their homes.

“It’s inconvenient, it’s challenging, but it’s essentially stage four for Melbourne, and it’s something we can do in regional Victoria without causing significant economic cost, but getting a really significant public health benefit,” Mr Andrews said.

The Government will also impose restrictions on face-to-face gatherings in some regional local government areas from midnight tonight.

Residents in Greater Geelong, Surf Coast, Moorabool, Golden Plains, Colac-Otway and the Borough of Queenscliffe will not be allowed to host visitors, weddings or funerals at their homes.

Mr Andrews said the restrictions were designed to tackle family-to-family transmission, and that hospitality venues would be allowed to remain open.

“I know that it may seem counterintuitive that you can go to the pub but you can’t go to your mate’s place,” he said.

“But ultimately … the data drives that decision. That’s where the transmission is. It’s not in cafes and restaurants, but it is, in small numbers, in people’s homes. One family to another.”

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Positive case found attending work
The Premier said today’s case numbers reflected increased cases in aged care, but also said “too many people are still going to work when they have symptoms”.

“So long as that continues, we will continue to see numbers go up,” he said.

Victoria COVID-19 snapshot
Confirmed cases so far: 9,998
Confirmed active cases: 5,385
Deaths: 105
Suspected cases of community transmission: More than 1,363
Cases in hospital: 312
Intensive care patients: 34
Active cases in healthcare workers: Approximately 502
Active cases in aged care: 913
Tests since pandemic began: More than 1.57 million
Updated Thursday, July 30

Latest information from the Victorian Government
The Premier said Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel and Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) staff had doorknocked 798 properties in Victoria, including 269 yesterday.

Mr Andrews said in one instance, the COVID-19 positive person they were looking for was not at home.

“They weren’t home but a family member was and the family member helpfully pointed out that that person, a positive coronavirus case, was at work,” he said.

“To have found even one person who had disregarded their diagnosis and instead had decided to go to work is very disappointing.”

Today’s increase in new cases surpasses Victoria’s previous single-day record increase by more than 190 cases.

On Monday the state recorded 532 new infections.

Yesterday’s increase of 295 cases was the first time since Friday the state’s daily increase had been below 300, but Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton declined to say the state had passed a peak.

A row of patient transport vans are parked outside the Epping Gardens aged care home.
Patient transport vans parked outside Epping Gardens aged care home in Melbourne’s north on Wednesday, as authorities prepared to transport several residents infected with coronavirus to hospital.(ABC News)
“We could get a number of aged care facilities with 50, 60, 70 cases a day that would change the numbers, that would also put at risk the broader community,” Professor Sutton said yesterday.

Victoria has now recorded a total of 9,998 coronavirus cases and 105 deaths since the pandemic began.

Commonwealth supporting aged care response in Victoria
The rise in cases comes as Victoria works to contain more than 80 outbreaks at nursing homes in the state.

Several deaths in Victoria’s second wave of coronavirus infections have been connected to aged care outbreaks.

The Federal Government has deployed ADF personnel, AUSMAT specialists and extra PPE to Victoria to help bolster the state’s response to the crisis.

The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is also assisting at the Epping Gardens nursing home in Melbourne’s north, where more than 61 residents have been infected and two have died.

A woman wearing a clear plastic face shield and a blue surgical mask points to a nursing home.
Angela wants her mum moved out of the Epping Gardens nursing home.(ABC News)
Outside the facility this morning, Angela was trying to get information about her 87-year-old mother Carmela, a resident in the home.

Angela said her mother did not have coronavirus, but she feared for her safety while she was inside the nursing home.

“Mentally my mother needs help and at this age when they are in their 80s, someone needs to step in and get them out,” she said.

“They’re getting neglected. It is so sad that they have been locked up three weeks in one room.

“Get them out of the room. Get them into another safe place. Get them to a hospital. Please, help!”

Source: abc