The 'super spreader' behind Australia's Covid-19 surge

Over 1000 people have refused tests and many thought the virus was a conspiracy. Photo / 123rf

The Australian state of Victoria recorded another big spike in Covid-19 cases on Friday and it was revealed a "super spreader" may be behind the second wave.

As Victorians come to grips with another surge in cases, Health Minister Jenny Mikakos says there is a "super spreader" in Melbourne's northern and western suburbs.

There are 66 new coronavirus cases in Victoria today, including 28 from an unknown source, the Premier says. The state's cases make up the bulk of Australia's 81 new cases.

Mikakos says there is a "super spreader", a single person who may be spreading the virus around Melbourne.

She says a genomic sequencing report revealed the spreader may be responsible for an "upsurge in cases".

"No other state has subjected itself to the level of scrutiny that Victoria has. So this genomic sequencing tells us part of a story but it is important that the judicial inquiry be enabled to thoroughly examine what went wrong here.

"I have to say I am deeply, deeply frustrated by what has happened here. Deeply frustrated because we were doing extremely well and only two – three weeks ago, we had some days of zero cases.

"To see an upsurge of cases in two weeks is deeply frustrating to me and I know it is deeply frustrating to Victorians as well."

Premier Daniel Andrews said that of the 66 new cases, 17 are connected to contained outbreaks, one is connected to hotel quarantine, 20 are from routine testing and 28 are from an unknown source.

The Premier warned residents in Victoria living outside "hot zones" that they may soon be locked down, too.

"You don't have to live in a hot spot postcodes to follow the rules, and if people don't follow the rules then you will be living in a hot spot postcode because I will have no choice but to shut down more and more parts of our city and potentially our state," Andrews said.

We don't want to get to (locking down more suburbs)," the Premier said.

"If you are sick, the only thing you should be doing is coming forward and getting tested.

"You can't go to work, you can't visit friends, you can't pretend that you aren't sick. This thing is so wildly infectious. It only takes one person, one person, and you can finish up with entire suburbs locked down."

BREAKING: Health Minister Jenny Mikakos says there is a "super spreader" -- a single source -- spreading the infection around the north and west of Melbourne. The information comes from a genomic sequencing report the govt received on Tuesday. @newscomauHQ

— Rohan Smith (@Ro_Smith) July 3, 2020

There are 23 Victorians in hospital, including six in intensive care.

It was also revealed today that more than 10,000 people refused tests and many did so because they do not believe the virus is real.

More than 1064 tests have been conducted since the suburban blitz started last week, with 95,000 doors knocked on and 449 confirmed coronavirus cases.

"We are analysing that data to see exactly why people are refusing, but it is concerning that some people believe that coronavirus is a conspiracy or that it won't impact on them," Mikakos said.