Dire measles outbreak hits major state
Victoria is seeing its worst measles outbreak in a decade, as the global outbreak continues to penetrate Australian borders.
Victorian health authorities issued a warning on Monday, with a list of exposure sites that include the Melbourne international airport, a Westfield, Coles, Aldi and a pet store.
'A growing number of measles cases have acquired their infection locally in Victoria,' the state's chief health officer, Tarun Weeramanthri, said.
'There is currently an increased risk of measles in the greater Melbourne and Mitchell Shire, with a number of public exposure sites identified.
'There is also an ongoing risk of measles being imported into Victoria by travellers returning from overseas or interstate.'
Victoria has now recorded 23 measles cases this year, surpassing the 2024 total.
This comes after similar outbreaks in NSW and Western Australia.
Southern and southeast Asia, eastern Europe and the US have been experiencing outbreaks in recent months, with cases in the thousands.
A person infected with measles who recently travelled through Pakistan arrived in Melbourne on an Emirates flight on April 24, Dr Weeramanthri said in a statement on Monday.
The Department of Health also posted a string of 'exposure sites' in and around the town of Kilmore, which is about 60km north of Melbourne, plus a potential exposure window at Tullamarine Airport.
Anyone in around these sites needs to monitor for symptoms for two weeks: International arrivals, terminal 2, between 8.35am to 10.10am on April 20, ALDI Kilmore between 2pm and 3pm on April 21.
The library, Coles and Petstock in Kilmore on the afternoon of April 22 are also exposure sites.
The infected person then went to the Kilmore District Hospital Urgent Care Centre between 3pm and 4pm on April 23.
Anyone on Vietnam Airlines flight VN781 from Ho Chi Minh to Melbourne that landed on the morning of April 20 also needs to monitor for symptoms for two weeks.
People who visited Fountain Gate Westfield on the afternoons of April 10 and April 12 should look for symptoms too.
Symptoms of measles include fever, cough, sore or red eyes, a runny nose, fatigue, followed by a red rash. The rash usually starts on the face and spreads.
'Measles is a highly infectious disease that can lead to uncommon but serious complications, such as pneumonia and brain inflammation,' Dr Weeramanthri said
'The majority of recent cases have arisen in people who have not had two documented doses of the MMR vaccine.' The vaccine is free for all Victorians.
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