A sign reading 'Go straight home and Isolate' is seen at the exit of a drive through covid-19 testing site at Highpoint shopping centre in Melbourne. Photo / Getty Images
A sign reading 'Go straight home and Isolate' is seen at the exit of a drive through covid-19 testing site at Highpoint shopping centre in Melbourne. Photo / Getty Images
Australia has broken a record for coronavirus case numbers today.
The nation's highest day of new cases previously was back in March with a total of 460 cases across all states.
Today Victoria alone topped that number with 484 new cases. If you include the 16 new cases in NSW and one in Queensland, it brings today's total to 501 new cases.
The country's cases peaked on March 28 with 460 cases — that included Victoria's 111 cases and 212 in NSW — but Victoria has recorded massive spikes over the last two weeks. The state's previous record was 428 new cases last Friday.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said if you did a weekly average of coronavirus cases the state was seeing some stability.
"We're not seeing that doubling and doubling again every couple of days," he said.
"But we're certainly not seeing numbers come down as we would like them to."
He said from 3810 cases, recorded between July 7 and July 21, he was "very unhappy and very sad" to have to report that nearly 9 in 10 — or 3400 cases — did not isolate between when they first felt sick and when they went to get a test.
"The only thing you can do when you feel sick — the one and only thing that you can and must do when you feel sick – is to go and get tested," he said.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews speaks to the media during a press conference in Melbourne. Photo / AP
"Nothing else is acceptable. You must go and get tested when you feel sick. That is the only thing that you can and must do. And if people don't do that, then we will continue to see numbers increase.
"I'm being as frank, as blunt, as clear as I can. Because this message is central to the overall success — or otherwise — of the strategy and the restrictions that we have in place."
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the state was at the most critical moment in its battle against the coronavirus.
"The next few weeks are the most critical in New South Wales since the lockdown earlier in March and April," she said.
"This is the most critical time for our state. If we main to get on top of the community transmission at this stage, we have a much better chance of continuing the move forward in a positive way, but the next few weeks are critical.
"We are not out of the woods by any stretch, quite the opposite."
NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant said NSW residents should limit their non-essential travel and gatherings over the next three weeks.
"What we are suggesting over this next period of time, can everyone just reflect on their travel arrangements, their non-essential travel," she said.
"Can with limit non-essential travel for the next few weeks. Can we just reflect on the gatherings that we are going to go to or host and can we limit the numbers."
