Why was there a COVID-19 outbreak in Colac's abattoir, but not one in Warrnambool?
Last month, two abattoirs in south-west Victoria were visited by inspectors who later tested positive for COVID-19 and were contagious while on site, but only one of the cases led to a large outbreak. Key points: More than 80 COVID-19 cases have been linked to an outbreak at the Australian Lamb Company abattoir in Colac More than 80 COVID-19 cases have been linked to an outbreak at the Australian Lamb Company abattoir in Colac Midfield Meats in Warrnambool avoided an outbreak despite being exposed to coronavirus in similar circumstances Midfield Meats in Warrnambool avoided an outbreak despite being exposed to coronavirus in similar circumstances Experts say DHHS should look at how Midfield acted to avoid an outbreak There have been criticisms levelled over how the state's Department of Health and Human Services handled both cases, but experts say there are lessons to be learnt in understanding what happened. "We couldn't get clear answers out of DHHS at that early stage," Mr McKenna said. "Now it's a sample size of one, but it shows what's possible, and that you're not always going to have these terrible local outbreaks, even if you do have a worksite exposed," she said. "We need to think differently outside of Melbourne and not just apply the Melbourne approach across Victoria, because we still have a different level of possibility in those regional settings," she said.
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