SYDNEY - Nearly 90% of people in the Australian state of Victoria with Covid-19 symptoms did not self-isolate, alarming new analysis has shown.
According to 9 News, 3,400 of the 3,810 cases who made up the analysis carried on as normal, despite suffering symptoms of coronavirus.
Victoria premier Daniel Andrews said he was "very unhappy and sad" with the figure and criticised those who ignored the advice about staying at home.
He said: "That's an interesting measure in that people have felt sick, they've got symptoms, and they've kept going shopping, they've kept going to work...
"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."
Figures also showed that over half (53%) of Victorians did not stay home between when they were tested for coronavirus and when they got their results.
Andrews said the current lockdown in the state would go on for "much longer" than six weeks if cases did not begin to go down.
Australia placed millions back into lockdown following a spike of coronavirus cases earlier this month.
The country has been among the world's most successful in containing its coronavirus outbreak – with the exception of Melbourne, Victoria's capital and the country's second-largest city.
The south-eastern state had some of the nation's toughest pandemic measures and was among the most reluctant to lift restrictions when the worst of the outbreak seemed to have passed.
But as most of the country emerges from lockdown restrictions, in Melbourne the virus has resumed spreading at an alarming rate.
It comes as weekly coronavirus deaths in England and Wales have fallen by almost a third within seven days and remain at the lowest level since before the lockdown.
There were 366 deaths registered in the week ending 10 July involving Covid-19 – accounting for 4.2% of all deaths in England and Wales, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
This is a 31.2% fall from the previous week, when there were 532 deaths where coronavirus was mentioned on the death certificate.
It is also the fourth week in a row that deaths have been below the number that would usually be expected at this time of year, based on an average from the previous five years.
There were a total of 8,690 deaths registered in England and Wales in the week to 10 July, according to the ONS, 560 fewer than the five-year average of 9,250.
