Victoria has again broken the record for the largest daily increase in coronavirus cases.
Health authorities have seen 532 new Covid-19 infections over the past 24 hours as the second wave in parts of the state appear to show no signs of slowing down. The previous highest number was set last week with 484.
Yesterday there was jump of 459 new infections and 10 deaths, which was one of the deadliest days in Australia since the pandemic began. The deaths include seven men aged between 40 and 80 years, and three women in their 70s and 80s.
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Seventy percent of the fatalities stem from outbreaks in aged care facilities. Health authorities say at least 228 people are in hospital and 42 are in intensive care.
It comes after a spate of videos going viral on social media showed people proudly flaunt the mandatory mask rule or social distancing measures.
One clip that has been circulated by thousands of people shows a woman walk into a Bunnings store in Melbourne's south east and berate staff when they tell her she can't come in without a mask.
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Deputy national chief medical officer, Dr Nick Coatsworth, told The Today Show that these videos are 'deeply disturbing'.
"It's clearly very disturbing when you see that sort of footage of one Australian citizen putting others in a very difficult situation and I just want to commend the Bunnings staff," he told the Channel 9 programme.
"I have seen the footage myself. They did a remarkable job staying calm against behaviour that is frankly unacceptable. What we can take away is that the vast majority of Australians find them unacceptable."
He added that wearing a mask is 'such a simple intervention'.
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"I just can't see how it takes away someone's human rights or individual liberty to just have to put a face covering on at the request of government. It is simple. We know it's effective. We know it's the time to do it," he said.
Featured Image Credit: PA