Victoria records one new COVID-19 case as residents of Melbourne apartment complex told to isolate

Three members of a family of four who recently returned to Victoria from NSW have tested positive for COVID-19, and an apartment complex has been locked down.

Deputy Secretary for Community Engagement and Testing Jeroen Weimar speaks to the media during a press conference on 16 June, 2021.

Deputy Secretary for Community Engagement and Testing Jeroen Weimar speaks to the media during a press conference on 16 June, 2021. Source: AAP

Victoria has recorded one new COVID-19 case and residents of a Melbourne apartment complex have been plunged into lockdown.

The new case is a member of a family of four, who live in the local government area of Hume and recently returned from NSW on red zone permits.



Two of the family members were already announced as positive coronavirus cases on Monday.

Authorities said three members of the family flew into Melbourne from Sydney on 4 July, while a fourth drove back on Thursday.

They all tested negative shortly after arrival but two became symptomatic and were swabbed again on Sunday, returning positive results on Monday morning.
Neither the flight nor Melbourne Airport has been listed as exposure sites, as the family tested negative for the virus two days after their arrival and other passengers are already self-isolating as part of their red zone permit conditions.

Meanwhile, more than 150 people at an apartment complex in Melbourne's northwest is in lockdown after a group of infectious NSW removalists visited the site.

Ariele Apartments on Thomas Holmes Street in Maribyrnong was listed as a tier-one exposure site overnight.

Anyone who was at the building, including the residential foyer, stairwells, lift, residential floors and car park, from 1pm to 11.59pm on Thursday are required to immediately get tested and isolate for 14 days.

Anyone who entered the complex between Friday to Monday must also get tested and isolate until they test negative for COVID-19.

The warnings exclude people who visited the commercial building on the ground floor of the complex.
Three removalists, two of whom have tested positive, travelled from Sydney through Victoria to Adelaide last week.

The workers made a drop-off at a family home in Craigieburn and a pick-up at the Maribyrnong apartment complex on Thursday. Both families are isolating and have tested negative so far.

The removalists then visited the McDonald's and Mobil on the Western Freeway at Ballan, with one taking a shower at the petrol station. Both sites have been listed as tier-one exposure sites from 5pm to 7pm on Thursday.

It is believed the men slept in their truck before driving to Adelaide on Friday morning.
COVID-19 Commander Jeroen Weimar said the men were "not being as forthcoming" as he would like regarding their movements.

"I can understand there's a number of scenarios that might be going through their heads," he told reporters on Tuesday.

"The only thing we care about is the information, so we can act upon it and put the public health response in place. Everything else is secondary."

Coles Craigieburn Central has also been listed as a tier-one exposure site between 5.28pm to 6.38pm on Saturday.

Some 9,410 people are self-isolating in Victoria after returning from red zones.

Two out of 269 people with red zones permits checked on Tuesday were "intentionally not isolating", Deputy Chief Health Officer Daniel O'Brien said.


Share
3 min read
Published 13 July 2021 7:48am
Updated 13 July 2021 1:18pm
Source: AAP, SBS



Share this with family and friends