13 Deaths and 240 New Cases in Victoria on Aug. 20

13 Deaths and 240 New Cases in Victoria on Aug. 20
Brett Sutton the Chief Health Officer of Victoria speaks to the media in Melbourne, Australia, on June 22, 2020. (Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)
AAP
By AAP
8/20/2020
Updated:
8/20/2020

Victoria has had 13 more coronavirus fatalities, taking the state’s death toll to 376 and the national figure to 463.

It also reported 240 new cases and while this was an increase on the previous day, the state’s five-day run of numbers under 300 continues.

But active cases in the state have plummeted in one day from 7155 to 4864 - a drop of 2291.

Victorian deputy chief health officer Allen Cheng said that was due to a clearing of cases in the past few days.

“A lot of work has gone in over the last couple of days to clear people from isolation so that they can go back into their normal activities,” he said.

He says the more significant figure is the 240 daily cases, saying it remains too high.

The 13 latest deaths include a man in his 70s, six women in their 80s and five women and a man in their 90s.

A cluster at Frankston Hospital in Melbourne southeast is also causing concern, with more than 50 cases.

A big drop in testing numbers is also worrying authorities, with numbers down about 30 percent.

People are being urged to be tested even if their symptoms are mild.