Covid 19 coronavirus Victoria: Woman with virus walks out of quarantine, takes tram

A sign reading 'Go straight home and Isolate' is seen in Melbourne. Photo / File

A woman walked out of a quarantine hotel seven hours after checking in and jumped on a tram despite testing positive for the coronavirus.

A woman who tested positive for the coronavirus walked out of a quarantine hotel seven hours after checking in and jumped on a tram in a significant control breach.

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According to the Australian, the woman was a voluntary isolation guest at the Brady Hotel and was mentally disturbed after suffering a recent assault. Nurses requested help from police and the Department of Health and Human Services but this was refused.

"The nurses end up monitoring the hall, working in two's for safety. As predicted, the guest leaves the hotel, without PPE, and jumps on a tram," a source told the paper. "She does not receive a fine and is not detained, but arguably she is a significant risk to public health."

Meanwhile as cases in regional Victorian grow, calls are mounting for stricter controls on the movement of Melburnians throughout the regions.

Premier Daniel Andrews told reporters during a press conference on Wednesday there had been some "increases of concern to us" in Geelong (179 cases), Ballarat (22 cases) and Bendigo (53 cases).

"They are stable and they're very low numbers, but coming off such a low base, any additional cases are a concern to us," Andrews said.

According to data from Victoria's Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), there are now more than 500 active Covid-19 cases across the state's regional areas. Andrews urged Melbourne residents, who are currently under a stage 4 lockdown, to reconsider whether their travel to regional Victoria is essential.