Coronavirus Victoria: Grim milestone as state records its deadliest day with 17 COVID -19 deaths

The West Australian
VideoThere are fears Victoria's restrictions could last until Christmas.

Victoria has recorded 394 new cases of COVID-19 and a record 17 deaths as the state continues to endure stage-four lockdown restrictions.

The 17 confirmed deaths in Victoria due to COVID-19 announced on Sunday - including two people in their 50s - takes the state’s death toll to 210 and the nationwide tally to 295.

Other confirmed deaths on Sunday included four people in their 70s, six people in their 80s and five people in their 90s. Ten of the 17 were linked to aged care outbreaks.

Premier Dan Andrews said more than 2700 confirmed COVID-19 cases around the state are of unknown origin and remain the primary concern of health authorities’.

“Even large numbers in known contained outbreaks are, to a certain extent, less significant than the smaller number of cases where we simply can’t find the circumstance or the point of origin,” Mr Andrews told reporters.

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The number of new cases on Sunday is lower than the 466 recorded on Saturday, 450 on Friday, 471 on Thursday and record 725 cases on Wednesday.

Metropolitan Melbourne has been under tough stage-four restrictions for a week but residents won’t see the results of their efforts for another one to two weeks.

Almost 270 Victorians, meanwhile, have been fined for breaching coronavirus restrictions, including a man helping a friend to move a TV across Melbourne.

Victoria Police issued a total of 268 fines to individuals, including 77 for curfew breaches, 38 for failing to wear a face mask when leaving home and 13 for vehicle checkpoint violations.

“There’s just a message for those people again - not only is it the wrong thing to do for your family and every family, it’s also the sort of behaviour that will mean this second wave goes longer than it should,” Mr Andrews said.

Victorian Health Minister Jenny Mikakos, meanwhile, declared in a late-night Twitter thread on Saturday she put “every ounce of energy” since January into halting the spread of COVID-19 in the state, but “if it wasn’t enough, then I’m deeply sorry”.

“Let the independent (hotel quarantine inquiry) judge do her job, let the cards fall where they may. I believe there is nothing to fear in seeking the truth. The truth will set you free,” Ms Mikakos said.

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