By Brendan Rees
Casey’s confirmed coronavirus cases has steadied at 52 cases – however it still remains the seventh highest area in the state, according to the state’s latest health data.
There were no new deaths reported yesterday – as of Friday 17 April. To date, 14 people have died from coronavirus in Victoria.
The Victoria’s Department of Health and Human Services figures showed the total number of coronavirus cases in Victoria was 1302 – an increase of one in 24 hours.
Currently 32 people are in hospital, including 13 patients in intensive care. 1159 people have recovered. More than 75,000 Victorians have been tested to date
In other neighbouring local government areas, the number of cases in Greater Dandenong also remained steady with 15 cases while Cardinia had 11. A further breakdown of cases showed Stonnington remained the highest in the state with 87 confirmed cases, which included suburbs such as Toorak and South Yarra.
The data, however, does not provide a suburb-by-suburb break-down of Covid-19 cases.
Meanwhile, in the past 24 hours (Friday 17 April) Victoria Police officers issued 67 fines to those breaching the directions in relation to staying at home, restricted activity and isolation directions – while conducting 540 spot checks across the state as part of Operation Sentinel.
Examples of breaches that resulted in fines included 13 people gathered at a private residence playing poker and four people gathering at a friend’s house.
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton urged Victorians to stay vigilant and not erode the gains made in slowing the spread of the virus.
“Now is not the time for complacency. We still have a long way to go,” Professor Sutton said.
“While we are starting to see some improvement in the rate of transmission, that rate could climb quickly if we lose focus.”
The total number of cases in Victoria is made up of 679 men and 623 women, with people aged from babies to their early nineties.
There are 136 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Victoria that may have been acquired through community transmission.
