
Victoria opens door to Sydney returnees as health workers told to "psychologically prepare."
Victoria has opened the door for residents stranded in Sydney to come home after the state's construction union headquarters were officially listed as a top-level COVID-19 exposure site.
From Thursday, Victorian residents in extreme risk zones such as Greater Sydney can apply for a permit if they are fully vaccinated, test negative within 72 hours of departure and isolate at home for 14 days.
Those who have been to an exposure site, are close contacts of a COVID-19 case or with symptoms will be knocked back, while non-Victorians are not eligible.
Victoria recorded a daily record 950 new locally acquired cases on Wednesday, 87 more than NSW as its outbreak trends downwards.
Unprecedented demand on Victorian hospitals leaving frontline workers to deal with what some paramedics are describing as "apocalyptic" conditions. #9Today pic.twitter.com/4MJyv3dR7V
— The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) September 29, 2021
One health official told The Age that the government’s health and safety watchdog, Safer Care Victoria, told them to "prepare psychologically because most of Victoria’s going to think 'this is great' [when lockdown is eased], meanwhile as a healthcare worker, it'll feel like a war zone."
It comes as the CFMEU's Melbourne headquarters were listed as a COVID-19 exposure site on Wednesday, a week after it was the scene of anti-vaccination protests.
The Elizabeth Street office was named by the Department of Health as a tier-one site for September 20, forcing union staff and officials into isolation for two weeks.
The outside of the building has also been classed as a tier-two venue, with protesters asked to get tested and isolate until they receive a negative result.
Four positive cases have been linked to the office so far, and CFMEU state secretary John Setka blamed the "disgusting behaviour of selfish and reckless" protesters for the outbreak.
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