Three more Victorian regions will join Melbourne and Ballarat in a seven-day lockdown due to rising COVID-19 case numbers in each area.
Greater Geelong, the Surf Coast and Mitchell shires will enter lockdown from 11.59pm on Sunday, with the stay-at-home rules – but no curfew – applying to people who live in those areas.
Out of Victoria’s 507 new cases, four were recorded in the Surf Coast and Geelong, with seven in Mitchell Shire.
There are now 17 active cases in the Geelong region and 15 in Mitchell Shire.
Under the lockdown, residents in the three regions must abide by a 10 kilometre travel limit from their homes, with four hours of exercise and social interaction allowed each day.
People can meet one other person, or up to four others from two households as long as all adults are fully vaccinated.
“If you’re in Geelong, Surf Coast or Mitchell Shire, follow the restrictions, get tested if you have symptoms, and get vaccinated if you haven’t already,” Premier Daniel Andrews said on Sunday.
“Regional communities have overcome outbreaks before – and this will be no different.”
Meanwhile, Victoria has declared 66 local government areas in NSW, plus Jervis Bay, will move from an extreme risk zone to a red zone under the travel permit system.
This will allow Victorians stranded in those areas to come home, where they must then isolate for 14 days and get tested regularly.
Additionally, all LGAs on the NSW-Victoria border will become red zones, except Albury which was on Thursday sent back into a week-long lockdown.
This means cross-border community residents, who have not left a cross-border area or visited an extreme risk zone in the past 14 days, can enter Victoria without a permit for any reason.
“We know that communities along the border have seen a lot of changes to the system, but it’s good news that most border residents will be able to use the permit exception that used to be in place,” Health Minister Martin Foley said.
“And additionally, many Victorians who have been in regional New South Wales will now be able to come home to isolate in Victoria.”
AAP
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