Australian Gov't To Deploy Extra 1,000 Military To Victoria State To Fight COVID-19

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th July, 2020) A total of 1,000 of personnel of the Australian Defense Force will be deployed to the country's southeastern Victoria state to fight new COVID-19 outbreak in the area, Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt said on Monday.

The state of Victoria is carrying the heaviest burden, as it is experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases linked to international arrivals quarantining in hotels in Melbourne. Last week, the state authorities announced the reintroduction of lockdown for six weeks. In particular, Melbourne residents will only be able to leave their homes to buy food and necessities, get help or look after others. People will also be allowed to go outside for sports activities, study or work if it is not possible to do it remotely.

"The Commonwealth will provide the Victorian Govt w/ an additional 1000 ADF personnel to assist with the COVID-19 outbreak. They will assist as required by the Vic Govt in areas such as road checkpoints, isolation, testing or patient follow-up. We thank them for their support," Hunt tweeted.

Australia has so far confirmed 9,797 COVID-19 cases and 108 related deaths. Meanwhile, a total of 7,728 people fully recovered from the disease. The state of Victoria is the leader in terms of the number of infections with 3,799 confirmed cases and 24 fatalities.