While Victoria continues to record daily cases of community-transmitted COVID-19 in the double digits, the government hasn’t ruled out locking down certain areas.
With cases hitting a three-month high, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has confirmed health authorities are considering putting Coronavirus hotspots in total lockdown.
The revelations came on Sunday, as the state recorded 49 new COVID-19 cases, and increase of eight on the day before.
The severity of the reaction is due to the fact that of the 49 cases, only four were linked to known outbreaks, leaving the source of infection for the remaining 45 unknown.
“If [lockdown] is deemed the appropriate public health response, then that is what we’ll do,” Mr Andrews said. “It’s a simple thing, but a massive thing, when it comes to trying to contain this virus given how wildly infectious it is and given how much and how quickly it moves,” he said.
A second lockdown would be a kick in the guts for the Victoria beauty industry, which only opened its doors less than a month ago, on June 1.
“I’m not sure we’d survive another round of lockdowns,” salon owner Jennifer Myers said. “We’re still in recovery mode from the initial lockdown, and I really don’t think we’d cope with it again. I have staff that have been loyal, but how can I expect them to do that if I have to stand them down again?”
While beauty salon owners wait with baited breath to hear about a potential lockdown, Mr Andrews reiterated: “[Lockdown] is not our preference. We’ll do it if we need to.”
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