Victoria records jump in COVID-19 cases after freedom day celebrations

Daily COVID-19 cases in Victoria have risen above the 1000 mark, following warnings from health authorities freedom day celebrations last month could lead to a spike in infections this week.

Modelling from the Burnet Institute suggested case numbers would drop once the state hit its 70 and 80 per cent vaccination targets, but COVID-19 commander Jeroen Weimar warned infections would likely increase again as restrictions eased.

People enjoy outdoor dining in the CBD.Credit:Getty

Mr Weimar predicted most infections would occur among the unvaccinated.

“We’ll be very interested to see how the numbers move over the week or two ahead,” he told reporters on October 23, the day after Victoria achieved its 70 per cent vaccination milestone.

“We are obviously concerned about rising numbers in some of those settings.”

On Thursday, Victoria recorded 1247 COVID-19 cases and nine deaths, up from 941 on Wednesday.

It comes as the state’s health authorities change the way they present daily coronavirus vaccination data to include vaccinated Victorians aged 12 and above, who are also eligible to receive the vaccine.

From now on, instead of sharing the vaccination rate of people aged 16 and above in the daily COVID update, authorities will provide the percentage of immunised Victorians aged 12 and over.

The move mirrors similar changes in jurisdictions like Western Australia and New South Wales.

To date, 81 per cent of Victorians aged 12 and above have been fully vaccinated.

There were 50,180 coronavirus tests processed on Wednesday, and 16,209 people received a coronavirus jab at a state-run vaccination hub.

There are now 17, 674 active coronavirus cases in the state. Of those, 660 are in hospital, 114 are in intensive care and 78 are on a ventilator.

Most patients who are admitted to hospital are unvaccinated.

Meanwhile, a pharmacy in Warragul has been added as a tier-one exposure site to the state’s list after a COVID-positive person attended the venue.

Anyone who visited Chemist Discount Centre on 38 Palmerston Street between 11am and 11.45am on October 27 should get tested immediately and isolate for seven days from exposure if they are fully vaccinated.

Those who visited the pharmacy but aren’t fully immunised should get tested and isolate for 14 days.

Our Breaking News Alert will notify you of significant breaking news when it happens. Get it here.

Share this post