Victoria on Saturday reported a single new case of Covid-19 and zero Covid-19 related deaths across the state in the 24 hours leading to Saturday. Saturday’s number has prompted Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton to call the progress a ‘remarkable achievement’.
Saturday’s single case, and Friday’s two new cases suggests Victoria has made a significant progress in controlling its second wave of infections. Yesterday, Premier Daniel Andrews said the last time Victoria had reported two new cases was on the 8th of June.
The numbers also come just a day ahead of lockdown restrictions announcement by Victoria – adding hope to many residents of significant relief from current measures.
The next step for Victoria’s roadmap to Covid-19 normal was supposed to be met when the state posted a 14-day rolling average of five cases or below, and not more than 5 mystery cases over a fourteen day period.
As of Saturday, 14 day rolling case average is 8.1 for Melbourne and 0.5 for regional Victoria. Melbourne has reported 17 mystery cases for the fortnight to Wednesday and none for regional Victoria.
Although the targets are yet to be realised, Premier Daniel Andrews had earlier teased Melburnians that they could look forward to some greater freedom from October 19 onward. He suggested that “while a reaching the third step is unlikely, Melburnians will be allowed to move ‘more freely”.
“A whole lot of outdoor activities are on the table”, he had said without divulging any key details.
Friday’s and Saturday’s numbers have made Victorians confident that restrictions in Melbourne are ready to be eased.
Mr. Adhikari, a resident of Glenroy said he looked forward to Sunday’s announcement. “It seems the combined efforts of the Victorian government and its people has borne fruit. We have come a long way, and look forward to easing of restrictions. However, we should also continue to be careful and practice vigilance”, he said.
