The messy family drama behind one of the world's biggest K-pop empires, as the state arrived at its 90 per cent vaccination target, Timely reminder: How to respond if you test positive to COVID-19. Victoria goes into lockdown for the third time. The jump in cases in NSW - which is nearly 2,000 more than the 3,763 infections reported on Wednesday - comes after a major backflip on restrictions in the state with millions once again required to check into venues via QR codes. But will it be safer for women? Among the potential exposure sites are a major Melbourne shopping centre and an AFL game. Melbourne has endured the world's longest cumulative time in lockdown, . Here we are in early January 2022 and its a wet day today (Sunday) in Melbourne, even though its summer. Mr Morrison told day that with the arrival of Omicron, and Australia's high vaccination numbers, the government's approach had "shifted gears". Key points: From Friday, Victorians must register their positive at-home RAT results on a government portal Health Minister Martin Foley said about one in 50 Victorians currently had COVID-19 Mr Foley said there was no plan to introduce a lockdown and that Victorians had to "coexist" with the virus Interactive map reveals when you may see SNOW. Kylie*, a midwife working in Melbourne hospitals, says despite difficulties with testing and high case numbers there is cause to be optimistic. Victoria's roadmap out of lockdown is announced. Im double vaxxed and feeling like, what was the point? To access medical care or provide caregiving. Professor Cowie said in light of that, it was time to recognise that positive rapid antigen tests had "the same authority as a PCR test". The 'winter shot': Everything you need to know about getting your next COVID-19 booster, If you catch COVID again, will your symptoms be worse? They are also furious that the virus was spread to Melbourne by removalists who failed to follow the rules of their workers' permit, did not wear masks and have not been cooperating with authorities. "It is very difficult to compare apples and oranges given the Delta strain and along the lockdown period in Victoria. Victorian Liberal deputy leader David Southwick said the restrictions had placed increased pressure on businesses. It's hard to believe that while Australia was so focused on the bushfires that raged in the early part of 2020, another threat was already on our shores one that would change the way we live and work for years. Australia's PCR testing sites have been overwhelmed by travellers trying to get tested before going on holiday. Housing policies favour the rich and leave first home buyers high and dry. Despite the efforts of the Victorian Aged Care Response Centre, a new unit specifically formed to bring these outbreaks under control, hundreds of elderly people died unnecessarily. Density limits of one person per 2 square metres will be introduced indoors at hospitality venues and entertainment venues. Victoria goes into lockdown for the sixth time. The thought of lockdown again is what is giving me a lot of anxiety and a lot of dread it scares me, says Melbourne man James Burke. The NSW government cancels all major events of more than 500 people. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Restrictions were the same as Melbourne, but . They just want an indication from governments both state and federal that they will be supported and able to easily access tests and healthcare as the outbreak, and any new variants to come, rolls on. Daniel Andrews must end this shadow lockdown and stop imposing 2020 style restrictions on family run cafes, retailers, restaurants and businesses and must immediately provide the support needed for their survival.. A leading Australian infectious disease expert has ripped into one of the most draconian measures enforced during the pandemic. I cannot stress this enough that everyone needs to take it seriously as hard lockdown," she said. Its another slap in the face to business owners that have suffered through two years of harsh restrictions.. The government chose not to bring in those changes at the time, arguing their introduction could hurt businesses and potentially undermine public confidence in the government's pandemic response. 'Think of Christmas Day when you're going to see elderly relatives, and wear a mask it's pretty simple.'. The rules have been introduced to curtail the tens of thousands of cases reported each day, as the virus spreads like wildfire in the community. Took a while for the anxiety to die down to get to this point but now I dont want to do anything else., Richard Chigwin is experiencing his third summer without customers. Ashleigh Cooper has spent the new year indoors. Everyone is trying (and failing) to make sourdough. "That really reinforces the message that whenever you leave the house, you've got to assume you can come into contact with someone who is infectious with covid.". NSW has meanwhile suffered its worst day of the pandemic with 5,715 new Covid-19 cases. His wife was the second. As the Covid years continue we are losing our magical thinking it will go away and not be a changing burden to our life, she says. The announcement of the restrictions comes a fortnight after density limits and the closure of indoor dancefloors were recommended by the Chief Health Officer as the state headed towards Christmas and New Year celebrations. Victoria on Thursday confirmed. On the same day. "We will know at the end of two weeks to what extent we need to extend the lockdown, whether there is any chance of face-to-face schooling. The ship is later linked to up to 900 infections, Cinemas, entertainment venues, casinos, and nightclubs, Restaurants and cafs except for takeaway and/or home delivery, Melbourne distiller Gypsy Hub is the first (that we know of). A man who had flown from Guandong, China, to Melbourne on January 19, 2020, tests positive for Covid-19, becoming Australias first confirmed case of the novel coronavirus. His store of rapid antigen tests, bought in early December, has been slowly dwindling as he hands them out to friends who have been identified as close contacts. "The number that would worry us in the last 24 hours is the 24 number. Thomas Barbera says his friend groups have done the same, and it has caused some uncomfortable conversations. She was appointed as an independent advisor on the AstraZeneca covid vaccine advisory group, Australia. We reflect on what we've learnt after 100 days of lockdown in Melbourne. Also invalidating is the implication, from some public health messaging and public responses to death announcements, that a disease is less devastating if most of its victims are people who have pre-existing conditions. Massive gas tanker crashes in Maryland and EXPLODES into fireball killing the driver and setting local What will the next pandemic be? Its important to appreciate the experiences across the states and territories in the pandemic have been as different as Swan Lager is to Victoria Bitter. Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! Which somehow seems fitting as things being out of order seems to be the way things are with Covid. He added that the government was encouraging dance floors to be closed. Published: 01:28 GMT, 23 December 2021 | Updated: 03:32 GMT, 23 December 2021. But maybe Im wrong. "In regards to the balancing of economic, social, mental health, cultural and just family reasons, that was the appropriate decision," he said. Friday will finally see the entire state of Victoria exit lockdown after. Victoria enters its fifth lockdown . Australia's two largest states have kicked off 2022 with record COVID cases - while others have opted to change restrictions. We already have this email. "We really are all in this together and the data proves it.". Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Covid-19 was first detected in Australia on January 25, 2020. decided it didn't want to go into . Mr Southwick called for the government to extend the Commercial Tenancy Relief Scheme for a further three months, to help thousands of small businesses avoid rent increases. Earlier, one locally acquired case was announced before a press conference at 11.30am where a further seven cases were announced. "There's going to be friction between people, because different people are going be to making a decision on the basis of their own risk profiles," he said. This brings the total number of infections in NSW to 864. As a sole trader, Chigwin wasnt eligible for government support in earlier rounds. A new 'veloway' is welcome news for Melbourne's cyclists. Victoria on Thursday confirmed another 2,005 new infections and ten deaths - up from the 1,503 cases recorded on Wednesday. Are you willing to justify risking the health of vulnerable people for that privilege?. Lockdown orders end for Sydney's northern beaches. NSW recorded 97 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. Were very keen to make sure we get a very firm grip of this as soon as we possibly can, Mr Weimar said. "I am highlighting that the risk is ever present and remember, what I'm reading you today is what has happened overnight so tomorrow, there might be different sites," Dr Chant said. Prince Harry shares struggles to be his 'authentic true self' growing up, saying he felt pressures to 'come As Prince Harry says he felt like the film 'the boy in the bubble' before having therapy, who was Hollywood's love affair with the new non-binary Brit Pack: After MeToo sex scandals, Tinseltown is desperate Five unexpected signs in your 20s and 30s you're at risk of developing heart disease later in life. The comments below have not been moderated. Catch up on the latestCOVID-19 news here. As the virus. . Public health orders enforced by strict and punitive laws have been replaced by a mantra of personal responsibility. "If you're fully vaccinated then your life will be back to normal, you'll be able to enjoy all of the things that you have yearned for and miss and desperately worked so hard for," Mr Andrews said as the state arrived at its 90 per cent vaccination target. Panic buying leaves supermarket shelves bare, leading the prime minister to urge calm and compassion at the shops:There is no issue with food supply in Australia, but there is an issue with the behaviour of Australians in supermarkets.". There are growing calls for Greater Sydney to be placed into a hard lockdown similar to the one imposed in Melbourne last year, but chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant insists NSW is already under "hard" restrictions. Vulnerabilities such as understaffing and inadequate training have been known for decades and were largely swept under the carpet. This is kicking off very quickly. 'People have come forward to get tested in record numbers, which is important to help keep people and the community safe, but we need to make sure our testing clinics are there for people who really need it,' Mr Perrottet said. The way hotel quarantine was managed in Victoria in the early part of the pandemic can only be described as a mess. postcodes 3038, 3064, 3047, 3060, 3012, 3032, 3055, 3042, 3021 and 3046 will go back into lockdown from July 2. Phoebe says her social circle has split in two: those who have had Covid and are now feeling invulnerable for 30 days despite warnings that earlier reinfection is possible and those who are curbing social activities to try to avoid it. Victorians are furious at the way Covid was spread from Sydney to Melbourne and are anxious about the prospect of a fresh lockdown as new cases emerge tonight. Time Out rebrands as Time In worldwide to bring our readers ways to connect with their cities and support urban culture without leaving home. AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/covid-restrictions-tighten-in-victoria-to-slow-spread-of-omicron/100741342. One of the things that makes Victoria so vibrant is its a melting pot of cultures. Which in normal times would mean nothing as Covid is not really any different from the flu. Timelines of Melbourne's lockdown - Since the pandemic began The timeline This basic timeline provides start and end dates along with COVID-19 cases for each of the six lockdowns Melburnians have faced since the pandemic began Lockdown One: 43 days BEGAN: March 30, 11:59pm ENDED: May 12, 11:59pm Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley said the decision to restrict density limits further was due to the majority of cases about 40 per cent being recorded in people in their 20s, whomake up the majority of hospitality workers. Premier Daniel Andrews has himself said there is no need to lockdown the Victorian capital for a seventh time once more than 90 per cent of the state's population has received both Covid vaccine doses. Kakadu National Park rangers in war against feral animals as populations boom, Shoe polish stands begin to vanish, lose their shine, A Nazi-hunting nun, an accused murderer, a theatre legend: This Australian actor plays them all, Macron says no 'double standards' between Ukraine and Africa as Congo leader urges France to back sanctions against Rwanda, They can be cheeky, nippy, and playful but these camels are also helping put a business on the map, Neurodivergent children are three times more likely to drown than their peers this class is working to change that, Mooney's Aussies humbled in Gujarat loss in WPL opener, A sea of colour as WorldPride takes over Sydney Harbour Bridge. Victoria's fifth lockdown ends, but less than a week later, the stateis plunged back into another long lockdown. PCR tests, which are carried out through testing sites, will be discouraged for those with symptoms and for contacts. Feeling tense. Multilingual Australia is missing out on vital COVID-19 information. The new BA.5 variant is considered to be even more transmissible than previous Omicron variants. He said that was a breach of the conditions of their permit. Mr Merlino said Victorians should also now work from home if they can and urged hospitality venues to switch to a seated-only service to reduce transmission. The World Health Organisation declares the novel coronavirus to be a pandemic. There are many venues who have given feedback that they are not at 100 per-cent capacity and havent been for quite some time, he said. 'Providing rapid-antigen testing kits for those who want to do the right thing will help take the pressure of our testing clinics, while giving people confidence to get on with their lives.'. The isolation status of six cases remain under investigation. Australia has one of the most powerful passports in the world. People in Melbourne start putting teddy bears in their windows for children to find on daily exercise walks. Under the testing change, those who test positive on a RAT will be considered "probable" cases and must isolate immediately for seven days and notify their contacts. Daily case numbers remain at tens of thousands in NSW and Victoria. We uncover the best of the city and put it all in an email for you. More than 90 per cent of those who had a positive RAT result, ended up with a positive PCR test, he said. Mr Andrews did not appear at Thursday's Covid press conference but did briefly interrupt his holiday to attend Wednesday's national cabinet meeting. one of the longest aggregate periods of strict lockdown, outbreaks that devastated the aged-care sector, Multilingual Australia is missing out on vital COVID-19 information. More than 2000 people who attended an MCG match between Carlton and Geelong on July 10 are also on alert after the game was attended by an infected person. I would not be fine I had my booster shot last week and was severely unwell for five days. It's what young people do and we don't begrudge them that," he said. His deputy leader said the state government is not considering adding to the world-record 262 days Melbourne has spent in lockdown since the Covid pandemic began, 'The promise was if you go and get vaccinated, you can enjoy Christmasand New Year with your families and loved ones and that's exactly what will happen.'. The WORST care homes in England: Interactive map reveals the lowest-rated 2,530 residences - so is there one Do YOU know your Adam and Eve from your Ruby Murray? But perhaps most frustrating was the news that the crew have not been cooperating with contact tracers who only today found out there were two trucks involved. People do not want to feel that you are judging them or saying that what they are doing is unsafe and it is not inherently unsafe, they just have different risk tolerance and different priorities than you, he says. If the measure of success in responding to the pandemic is the amount of disease prevented and lives saved, Australia will undoubtedly be held up globally as an exemplar of best practice. But to the credit of the authorities, efforts were boosted in the second part of 2020 and beyond, building resources that were language and culturally appropriate and partnering with community leaders to design local public health interventions and disseminate messages. "This is a hard lockdown. Mr Merlino's NSW counterpartDominic Perrottet has refused to bring back a sweeping indoor mask mandate - despite many health experts recommending residents continue wearing the face coverings indoors. The first person in Australia to die of Covid-19 dies in a Western Australia hospital. He also feels the loss of the sense of collective action which, for some, underscored the long lockdowns of 2020 and 2021. Sydneysiders who live alone are permitted to establish a 'single's bubble' with a friend. Here's everything we've learned from Melbourne's polarising e-scooter trials. And they lost control in just two weeks.. . 'Please confirm what Muslim refers to': Why Ali's birthday payment for his nephew was flagged by his bank, These engineers break their silenceafterdecade of criticism overBrisbane2011 flood handling, Kade was a fit 31-year-old when he died from a heart attack, Sherpa are world famous for their work, which is synonymous with their name. A crew of infectious removalists from Sydney transited through Victoria last Thursday, visiting households in Craigieburn and Maribyrnong, and coming into contact with two families of four. Follow our Covid live blog for the latest updates, a disease is less devastating if most of its victims are people who have pre-existing conditions, since ordered $62m worth of rapid antigen tests. Nonetheless, Friday's Google mobility data, which compares activity to a pre-pandemic baseline of several weeks over January and February in 2020, showed retail and recreation activity in the City of Melbourne falling62 per cent below the baseline. The public servant, 25, contracted Covid along with 16 others at a house party late last month.