Mornington News 7 September 2021

NEWS DESK Hot spot sparks call to test and get the jab A SOLICITOR’S office in Suffolk Street, Rosebud, was declared a Tier 1 COVID-19 hot spot last week after being visited by a suspected active case.

The Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton advised that anyone who attended Alpass & Associates, 10am-4.30pm, Thursday 26 August, immediately get tested and quarantine for 14 days.

Meanwhile, Mornington Peninsula Shire is urging residents to “get the jab as soon as you can”.

“Once 70 per cent of Victorians have had at least one vaccine dose the state government has said it will look at easing restrictions,” it said in a statement last week.

Vaccination reportedly reduces the risk of getting COVID-19 and protects sufferers against becoming very sick. Symptoms can include fever, coughing, sore throat, shortness of breath, runny nose, headache, loss of sense of smell, altered sense of taste, loss of appetite and fatigue.

To get vaccinated residents should call their GP to check if they are offering vaccinations or speak to their pharmacist. Call the vaccine hotline 1800 675 398 or visit coronavirus.vic. gov.au/vaccine to book a vaccination Vaccination hubs are at Frankston Community Vaccination Hub, Bayside Shopping Centre; Rosebud Clinic; Suite 5, 1533 Point Nepean Road, Capel Sound; and Rosebud Respiratory Clinic (now Peninsula Vaccination Centre), 1391 Point Nepean Road, Rosebud, call 0436 033 507.

For further advice call the 24-hour Coronavirus hotline 1800 675 398, your GP or use the state government's online self-assessment tool.

Testing is free if done through a public health centre or GP offering bulk billing. These include Rosebud Hospital; Frankston Hospital; Atticus Health Medical Clinic, Hastings; and Rosebud Respiratory Clinic.

Stephen Taylor

We’re here: A group of protesters at the Mornington shire offices with a small contingent of police. Picture: Gary Sissons

Anti-vaxers moved by fine threat ABOUT 30 anti-COVID vaccination protesters and one dog quietly stood outside Mornington Peninsula Shire’s Mornington offices on Tuesday last week.

Mornington Police Senior Sergeant Paul Edwards described the gathering as being well-behaved and resembling a “group of middle-aged residents getting out for a coffee”.

Senior Sergeant Edwards said members of the group disbanded after he warned that unless they moved on, they would be issued infringements for breaching the Chief Health Officer’s regulations.

“About 95 per cent were wearing masks and, if they weren’t, they were offered one by police or allowed exemptions because of underlying health issues,” Senior Sergeant Edwards said.

He estimated the average age of the protesters was mid-50s.

In the days leading up to the protest, pamphlets had been distributed at Mornington and Mount Martha, claiming the efficacy of the vaccines was unknown and that they were untested and

that the “cure is worse than the disease”.

“If you are not sick, why would you let a stranger inject an unknown, untested substance into your body,” the pamphlet stated. “Especially when it doesn’t stop you getting COVID, and doesn’t stop you spreading it? What’s the point?”

The pamphlet claimed censorship was stifling scientific debate and covering up the number and degree of adverse reactions and deaths. It said masks “don’t work – in fact they are dangerous [as] we are supposed to breathe oxygen”.

“There is a 97 per cent recovery rate from COVID-19 and an 80 per cent failure rate of the vaccine,” the pamphlet stated, before demanding to know why hydroxychloroquine and “other known treatments” had been banned. The medication was controversially recommended by former President Donald Trump as a cure for the disease and subsequently dismissed by medical experts.

The pamphlet also claimed COVID-19 was “just a flu” being peddled as part of a “planned global takeover”. It said QR codes were being

used to “track and trace you, exactly the same as in China, getting you ready for vaccine passports where you will be under total control”.

Fines for rule breakers LOCAL Area Commander Inspector Terry Rowlands said 28 infringements had been issued for breaching pandemic restrictions on the Mornington Peninsula since 28 August.

These were for not wearing a face covering, having no valid reason for being out, and group gatherings, including fines for eight people at Crib Point who “decided it would be a good idea to hold a barbecue”.

“Some people are ignorant of the Chief Health Officer’s directions and to those people I only have one thing to say and that is expect to receive a fine,” Inspector Rowlands said.

“These restrictions are in place to keep the community safe and it’s the selfish few that tout the restrictions which place many in jeopardy of catching the virus.”

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Mornington News

7 September 2021

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