Investigation Underway Into Victoria’s First Potential Omicron Case

Victoria reported 1312 new infections on Wednesday and five more Covid-related deaths.

There are currently 11,331 active coronavirus cases, with 303 people in hospital, while 51 of those are in ICU and 27 are on ventilators.

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Another 46 people are in intensive care with Covid, but the health Department have confirmed their infections are no longer considered active.

The new cases were detected from a whooping 79,490 swabs collected on Tuesday, while 3858 vaccine doses were administered at state-run hubs, with more at GP clinics and pharmacies.

As of Wednesday, more than 91 per cent of Victorians aged over 12 are now fully vaccinated.

Meantime, the garden state is waiting to hear from health authorities, amid concerns the first case of Omicron has arrived in Victoria

The person delivered a positive Covid test after travelling to Melbourne from the Netherlands via Abu Dhabi last week

The infected overseas traveller is in hotel quarantine as health authorities conduct gnomic sequencing to identify the virus and its source.

Leading epidemiologist Professor Nancy Baxter cautions now is the time to be hyper vigilant.

"It is a concern, and honestly I am starting to wear my mask right now. I think that right now there is a real risk that people could get Covid," she said.

"It’s very, very transmissible and wearing a well fitted high quality mask is the thing you can do to protect yourself right now".

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