Victorian chief health officer Brett Sutton personally endorsed a decision to furlough staff at St Basil’s Home for the Aged in Melbourne.
Sutton told an inquest into the home, where 45 residents died after contacting COVID-19 last year, that the decision was conditional on an emergency workforce being found.
Staff at the home, who were declared close contacts, were replaced by inexperienced agency staff.
The inquest has heard that almost half of the necessary workers could not be found the day before the handover on July 22. It also heard residents had missed meals and medications within hours of the transfer.
“I think everyone understands that if there was no sign of replacement staff on [the] 22nd (2020), the handover would not take place,” officer Sutton said.
Sutton conceded his direction that staff had to furlough by close of business that day could have been clearer.
Prof Sutton said he had not been told of any specific problems in finding an emergency workforce, although he had not made any inquiries himself.
He agreed he was aware his direction would mean replacing the entire St Basil’s workforce, which would result in losing the clinical governance framework for the home, a challenging situation without enough workers with adequate experience
Under examination by counsel assisting Peter Rozen QC, Sutton said he was asked to personally endorse in writing the move to furlough staff, after the chairman of St Basil’s initially refused to follow health directions.
“This ongoing outbreak represents a significant and serious threat to public health,” Sutton wrote to the home’s chairman.
Also on Friday, the inquest was told state health authorities knew St Basil’s would be at least 30 staff short the day before it furloughed the home’s workforce.
The shortage represented almost half of the 66 workers needed to cover shifts at St Basil’s on July 22 last year, the day its workforce was sent home.
Victoria’s health department has provided another 2000 pages of evidence to the inquest as it concludes its second week of witness testimony, with one lawyer telling Victorian State Coroner John Cain that there had been no time to review the documents.
SA Health has listed a total of 15 exposure sites related to three positive COVID-19 cases, including Kalymnos Pastries at Torrensville.
The store has been listed as a low-risk casual contact site after a close contact of a Covid case visited the store between 11.15 am and 11.55 am on Tuesday.
Owner George Diakomichalis said he was notified of the exposure by health officials, who told him the shop was allowed to continue trading.
However, he said he and his wife made the decision to voluntarily close on Friday, for one day, so that the site could be cleaned.
“It’s overkill but we have a duty to protect our customers, so we’re basically cleaning the place from top to bottom – sanitising everything with bleaches and detergent” he tells The Advertiser.
“We’re one of the first places that’s been hit (in SA), but we knew it was coming and this is what we need to do to get through it and back to normality.”
George and Eleni Diakomichalis of Kalymnos Pastries, Torrensville (Photo: AAP/ Keryn Stevens)
The shop, which will reopen on Saturday, has received an outpour of support since Mr Diakomichalis took to social media on Thursday night to announce the temporary closure.
Despite the exposure, he said he agrees with the decision to open the state’s borders.
“The reality is we have to go back to normality sooner rather than later,” he said.
“There are a lot of families who have been separated for a long time, and I understand we need to be able to live with this and do the right things.”
Low-risk casual contacts must monitor for symptoms and get tested immediately if any develop.
Angela Vithoulkas is part of an all-female group of candidates lining up to dethrone Clover Moore as Sydney Lord Mayor.
Vithoulkas is the company of the Liberals’ Shauna Jarrett, the Greens’ Sylvie Ellsmore, and Unite for Sydney’s Yvonne Weldon.
The founder of the Small Business Party has received numerous anonymous phone calls demanding she drop out of the race.
“I’m already getting calls, I won’t say from who, but calls from other political parties who are telling me I’m wasting my time and saying, ‘why are you even bothering to run, you’re not going to get elected’,” she tells ABC News.
“I formed a political party in NSW, which is almost completely impossible from a red tape perspective … yet (some say) I only run in an election to get a husband.”
Angela Vithoulkas was the co-owner of VIVO café in Sydney’s CBD for 16 years. (Source: Sensible Centre)
Despite it all, the hopeful continues her campaign to secure the role ahead of NSW’s local government elections on December 4. Pre-polling voting started this week.
“The way this council operates is clearly a problem,” she tells the Daily Telegraph.
“I’m hearing all sorts of political finger-pointing – what Labor did, what Liberals did. Let’s put politics aside … The city needs to run better, it needs to be more efficient and streamlined. We need to get out of [the] way [of businesses],” she said.
“What on earth are we in the business of doing, besides growing our balance sheet to do what?”
She’s also vying to be elected as a City of Sydney councillor for a third term.
A big crowd is expected to farewell Jim Fouras on Monday at the Greek Orthodox Church in South Melbourne after he died from a heart attack earlier this month aged 83.
Fouras was the former speaker of the Queensland Parliament and Member for Ashgrove.
Member for Cooper Jonty Bush, whose electorate covers Ashgrove, said the pollie loved a chat.
“A five minute walk down the road would turn into an hour with Jim as everyone stopped to say hello,” says Bush.
“During last year’s election, Jim campaigned for me every day. His energy was that of a 20-year-old. He had so many stories the man could have written a dozen autobiographies. The sign of a life well lived.”
Politician Demetrios (Jim) Fouras (Photo: Queensland State Archives)
Fouras left Kalavryta for Queensland at 10 years old with very little English. He graduated with a double degree in Science and Economics from the University of Queensland.
He was the Labor member for South Melbourne between 1977 and 1986 before working as a Human Rights Commissioner investigating homelessness in Australia.
He held the seat of Ashgrove between 1989 and 2006, becoming speaker of the Legislative Assembly from 1990 to 1996.
His tenure as speaker was not without controversy. The ALP tried to dump Fouras as speaker in 1995 after the party was elected with a one-seat majority.
Fouras is survived by his wife Tanya, his children Yanoula, Athanasi, and Andreas, and seven grandchildren.
Delphi Bank has started a petition to call on the British Museum to return the Parthenon marbles to Greece.
The bank’s general manager Jim Sarris said the petition aims to “seek justice for our heritage and past generations” and raise “awareness of this social issue”.
“For Delphi Bank, it’s about the strength that lies in unity of community when fighting a common cause, and the strength of culture and heritage which comes from at long last unifying the marbles with their homeland.”
The Australians for the Return of the Parthenon Marbles Committee leads Elly Symons and George Vardas call on signatories to “make their voice heard”.
“‘We are confident Australians will lend their support to the reunification of the divided sculptures in Greece and within sight of the Parthenon monument,” the Committee said.
Artist Natalie Rompotis has partnered with the bank to create an artwork ‘L E A D T H E W A Y’ to help reinforce their message.
Artist Natalie Rompotis has partnered with the bank to create an artwork ‘L E A D T H E W A Y’ to help reinforce their message.
“Ever since its independence from Ottoman rule, Greece has been requesting from the United Kingdom, the repatriation of its – and my – cultural heritage.”
“As such, I am proud to partner with [Delphi Bank] in the creation of artworks that seek to capture the beauty and genius of this monument to humankind.”
The marbles — 17 figures and part of a frieze that decorated the 2,500-year-old Acropolis monument — were taken from the ancient temple by Lord Elgin, the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, in the early 19th century. They have been at the centre of a long dispute between the Greece and the United Kingdom.
Britain maintains that Elgin acquired the sculptures legally when Greece was ruled by the Ottomans. The Greek government says they were stolen and wants them returned for display in the new Acropolis Museum that opened in 2009.
The petition will be available across the bank’s branches in Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia, Queensland, and online.
The remains of seven Greek soldiers who lost their lives during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974 were returned to Greece Thursday.
Their remains were loaded onto a C-130 military plane at Larnaca airport with their relatives and Greek defence minister Nikolaos Hardalias in attendance.
“I am here to receive my brother’s remains and take them back to Greece,” said Angeliki Karagouni, sister of reserve warrant officer Charalambos Karagounis, who was among the seven.
“I am very moved, but also proud, that my brother is a hero.”
Karagouni last saw her brother when she was 14 years old. She said his absence has been painful ever since.
“I learned that the remains I’m getting show he was taken as a prisoner, abused and executed.”
“I feel proud to be taking my brother home to his birthplace,” she said.
Relatives of the soldiers received medals of honours at the ceremony.
Six of the soldiers were stationed in Eldyk, the Hellenic Force in Cyprus, and the seventh in Noratlas, the military aircraft shot down in Nicosia.
Presidential Commissioner Photis Photiou said 77 other Greek citizens on their list remain missing, with 47 unaccounted for.
The Crows selected Rachele on Thursday as pick 6 in Wednesday night’s AFL draft.
Rachele, 18, is a Greek-Italian-Australian from Shepparton and tells AFC Media the Crows are now his “second family”.
“To see how welcoming the Adelaide Crows are, my family is very comfortable with me heading here,” Rachele said.
(Photo: Rodney Braithwaite)
The midfielder shared the moment with his parents Michelle and Jason, younger twin brothers Isaac and Lucas, grandma Elizabeth, grandpa James, and Nonno Dominique.
“They were all very proud and happy for me and it was good to spend that moment with them,” Rachele said.
“They’ve been massive and very influential over the past few years and I am very grateful for them.”
Rachele’s father, of Italian heritage, works on the family’s third-generation commercial orchid in Shepparton, while his mother is Greek.
(Photo: via AFC)
“Every single year we make tomato sauce with all my uncles and cousins,” Rachele said. “Then we make salami as well – they are the two big traditions that we keep going.”
“I’ll definitely bring some of my sauce down for sure.”
Rachele is keen to head to West Lakes and get stuck into pre-season.
“I think I can bring that spark and excitement to the Crows but there’s a long way to go yet,” he said.
Pope Francis is arranging to transfer a number of migrants to Italy from Cyprus, ahead of his visit next week.
Cypriot government spokesman Marios Pelekanos has confirmed the Vatican is now making arrangements with Cypriot authorities.
There are no specifics yet as to how many migrants will leave the island or about the logistics of their trip.
The pope made headlines in 2016 when he brought a dozen Syrian Muslims back with him aboard his return flight to Rome from Lesbos.
Cyprus is currently seeking European Union approval to stop processing asylum claims from migrants amid a surge of new arrivals.
They also ask the EU to relocate a number of asylum seekers in Cyprus to other member countries of the bloc and strike agreements with third countries to take back their citizens who have had their asylum applications rejected.
Cypriot authorities say in just the first ten months of this yer, migrant arrivals were up 38% compared to all of 2020.
Of the 10,868 new arrivals, 9,270 illegally crossed a United Nations-controlled buffer zone from the breakaway Turkish Cypriot north to seek asylum in the internationally recognized south.
Asylum seekers comprise 4% of the population in the island’s south — four times the average of other EU front-line states.
Migrants say conditions at a reception camp just outside the Cypriot capital Nicosia are deteriorating since it currently houses nearly double its maximum capacity of 1,200 people.
Schadrach Mvunze from the Democratic Republic of Congo said what he and others at the camp want is somewhere where they can live in peace, whether it’s in Cyprus or elsewhere.
“Cyprus has welcomed us … If they are unable to welcome us, they can also even send us perhaps to France, to Canada, to England,” Mvunze told The Associated Press, which visited the camp on Thursday. “They can scatter us all over Europe to make us more comfortable.”
Nigerian Daniel Idu who crossed from the breakaway north to apply for international protection in the south said all he asks is a chance to lift his aging mother and young son out of grinding poverty.
“If I have the opportunity to meet with the pope, I will ask for just one thing and that is to settle here and probably have a better job to support my family,” he said.
If you are heading to a Greek wedding or private function and Iho Nyx band is the main entertainment, you know you are in for a fun night. The dynamic Greek band can play multiple instruments and styles of music, ensuring they are able to cater for the broad range of Greece’s musical heritage.
In fact, that’s exactly what they did when they performed live on The Greek Herald’s Facebook page to entertain our readers during lockdown. Their performance was so well received we just had to find out more about them from band member, Adoni Petrandonakis.
1. Tell us a little bit about Iho Nyx band.
Iho Nyx (Sound of the Night in ancient Greek) was formed by Angelo Goutzios and I in 2008, initially focusing on traditional Cretan music and entehna. We quickly broadened our repertoire to include most genres of Greek music including contemporary, traditional music from the islands and mainland Greece.
We perform at festivals all over Australia and New Zealand, weddings, private functions, events at restaurants, tribute shows and support international artists. A number of us in the band can play multiple instruments and this allows us to really cater for the broad range of our rich musical heritage.
As a group, we’re very good friends and share common vision in music. We perceive our role in maintaining and evolving our cultural heritage as a duty and take pride in always presenting a quality and refined product.
In its present form, Iho Nyx comprises of the following members:
Adoni Petrandonakis: Cretan heritage. 42 and a father of 3, Airline Pilot / Mortgage Broker (Bachelor and Master’s degrees in Aviation Management). Vocalist, Lyra, Guitar, Lute, Mandolin, Baglama and Tzoura and music teaching experience. Trained to play the Lyra in Crete from the age of 9, Adoni performed in Crete and Cyprus up to the age of 20 when he moved back to Sydney.
Angelo Goutzios: Heritage from Crete and Halkidiki, 35 and a father of 2, Real Estate agent, Vocals, Lute, Bouzouki with music teaching experience and DJ. Started playing the bouzouki at the age of 7 and inspired by his cousin, Manos Pyrovolakis, progressed onto the Cretan Lute after the age of 13.
Andrew Kalogeropoulos: Heritage from the Peloponese and Cyprus, 39, father of 2, Physiotherapist (Bachelor of Physiotherapy) and owner of Midas Touch Physiotherapy. Vocalist, Keyboards (classically trained starting at the age of 8) with recording and production experience for television shows and aspiring artists.
George Ganakas: Karya, Ellasonas (Mt Olympus), 57yo, father of 2, owner of Bass Gear Direct. Bass guitarist with over 45 years experience performing with local and overseas artists. George’s grandfather played flamenco guitar and his father, the bouzouki. George thrives on the energy and intensity of Cretan music and enjoys the versatility and wide range of genre’s covered by Iho Nyx.
Themi Ioakimidis: Pontian heritage, 33yo, a music tutor at St. Spyridon College (Bachelor of Business and Commerce & a Bachelor of Music). Vocalist, Guitarist, Bouzouki & Bass guitar. Themi started playing at the age of 10 and has been active in the Greek scene for over 10 years supporting famous Greek artists such as Dimitris Basis, Nikos Kourkoulis and Stathis Aggelopoulos. Themi is also an integral member of the resident band at Steki Taverna.
Foti Lambis: Rhodes and Cretan heritage. 42 and father of 1, Café Manager with undergraduate studies in Electrical/Computer Technology. Inspired by his father who was also a drummer, Foti enrolled into music theory and drum lessons at the age of 8. Experienced in studio session recordings and supporting former Australian Idol contestants.
We’re also routinely joined by George Paradisis (bouzouki), Nathan Pylarinos (bouzouki), Matina Kokkalis (vocalist), Jim Tsolakis (clarinet) and Savvas Iordanou (drums).
2.Do you have any musical highlights or performances which made an impact on you?
We’ve supported numerous Greek artists (amongst others: Glykeria, Hatziyianni, Lekkas, Pyrovolakis) which is always a novelty. However, our most memorable performances include:
Our 2018 Pyx Lax tribute show at the Factory Theatre that was part of the 2018 Greek Festival of Sydney – a sell-out event which meant a lot to us as it was a Sydney-first.
Our NYE event in Darwin last year which, due to the absence of all restrictions in the NT, was the largest Greek NYE event in the world.
We have also performed at events in the Sydney Opera House which is always awe-inspiring experience.
3.What do you love the most about performing?
We cover music from most parts of Greece from all eras. This allows us to reproduce all our favourite songs and provides opportunities for us to discover new combinations of instruments and sounds, creating a fusion that makes our “feel” as a group so unique.
A Cretan syrto can be followed by a Tsamiko, a Zeimbekiko, a Nisiotiko or a modern Greek song. We thrive on regularly renewing our repertoire and connecting as best we can with our audience.
4. Is there anything else you’d like to say?
In days gone by, there were a number of live Greek bands in Australia. This isn’t the case anymore and we all feel the need to ensure that our music industry stays alive and to preserve our musical heritage.
Australia has excellent Greek musicians that are willing to pass on their knowledge and I encourage everyone with an interest in music to reach out and start exploring their hidden talent.
For up-to-date information on where we’re performing next, follow us online at ihonyx.com or search for “Iho Nyx Band” on most social media platforms. We have a number of shows leading up to this year’s NYE event to welcome 2022.
The famous provocateur of France’s literary scene, “enfant terrible”, Michel Welbeck wrote in “Map and Territory” that: “life gives us a chance at some stage. If we are cowardly or undecided to seize it, life takes back its cards”.
There comes a time, when we need to do something to approach a potential happiness. This moment lasts a few days or even a few months, yet it occurs once.”
For Kiki Tsakaldimi, the first Greek woman to attempt to reach Everest, this opportunity appeared in 2014. In a “TEDx Thessaloniki”, where she heard the speech of Indian, Satyabrata Dam about the mountains.
Perhaps, imperceptibly, the memories of her dead dreams flooded her. “Until then I thought life had a roof. I had my job, my everyday life my friends. And then, suddenly, I heard his speech, which changed my life” says Kiki, who recently after the relaxation of restrictive measures climbed to the highest peak in Europe, Mt Elbrus, for a good cause. To raise awareness about lung cancer.
Her last ascent was the reason to converse with The Greek Herald and it became possible thanks to that speech, which was imprinted in her, like the trace left upon soft wax. Forever.
“It’s shocking that with a speech he convinced me that I can manage everything. That’s where the key to success is found. You have to believe in yourself. Today I believe that I can achieve everything” says Kiki, who lives permanently in Alexandroupolis and from there she makes her plans to conquer the highest peaks of the world.
The epiphany of that day had continued. The flame had been kindled in Kiki Tsakaldimi’s soul. So, she found the legend of mountaineering, Satyabrata Dam and asked him for help her change her life.
“Satya became my teacher, my coach, my guide in all the mountaineering expeditions that I have done to date,” says Kiki, who in 2017 decided to tackle the beast.
That large creature that can crush your dreams if you’re not careful…Everest…
Faced with fears in the vastness of Everest
She envisioned peaks unfolding in her eyes while dreaming in Alexandroupolis, and her goal of becoming the first Greek woman to reach the summit of Everest began to take shape. Although there was no mountaineering background, in collaboration with Satya Dam, a preparation plan was created, which involved mountain climbing.
The greatest difficulty, however, was the raising of the money required. “I was beaten by the goal but it did not deter me. Difficulties are our friends. A lot of money was required to go there and despite the distrust I managed to find the funds needed because I was determined, ” says Kiki, the personification of optimism and a woman, who goes beyond her limits.
The days passed and in 2017, Kiki hovered in absolute vacuum, with minimal oxygen, with a temperature of -60 C and winds at 110 km. per hour. On Everest she was faced with her fears.
“A mistake there could put an end to your life. There is so much fatigue accumulated in your body that you have to be perfectly focused and attentive to the slightest movement.
They are the dead bodies you see on the steep slope, of climbers who did not respect the mountain and paid for it with their lives.
Death is around you, but you stay perfectly focused, disciplining every command of your guide” says Kiki Tsakaldimi in the” Greek Herald”.
The collapse of the dream
It was May 23, 2017. At a height of 8.250 meters when Satya Dam instructed the Greek mountaineer that it would be wiser to return back and not put their lives in greater risk.
“Emotions flooded in. Everything collapsed inside me. The dream I had was not fulfilled. Disappointment, sadness for a short time but also pride because I was the first Greek woman to reach such a height.
When I returned back I felt all-powerful, but retaining in me humility. I came back with the feeling that after I managed to get there, nothing can bend me”, notes Kiki Tsakaldimi
Disappointment became fuel for the sequel and in October 2018 Kiki Tsakaldimi, supporting the “Smile of the Child” climbed the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and became the first Greek climber to step on the summit of Ochos del Salado (6,893 m.) of the Andes in Chile, where there is also the highest volcano on Earth.
Cancer awareness and Australia
In Alexandroupolis, where she lives permanently, she remains alert, with the actions continuing less with mountaineering, but with more hiking.
A few weeks ago Kiki Tsakaldimi climbed Elbrus, Russia, the highest peak in Europe, on behalf of “FairLife L.C.C.”, an organization against lung cancer with the slogan “Only Life Is Breathtaking”.
“It was a climb certainly not easy. The conditions were not favourable but the purpose gave us impetus” says Kiki, who climbed with Satya, the Legend-climber and Ioannis Karadoukas, a 74-year-old climber who at every opportunity recalls that dreams do not have age.
“We wanted to send a resounding message for lung cancer prevention. We reached the highest peak in Europe. It was an experience special and unique. When we reach the top and see everything from above everything changes. It all looks so small.
There we are breathless by the view, by nature, by the greatness of the life we gaze upon. This is the motto, such images, those of life to be breathtaking and not lung cancer.
We must all adopt a healthy lifestyle to protect ourselves and those around us. This is also the message of which I am a bearer from “FairLife L.C.C.”.
Kiki aims to come to Australia as well.
She wants to climb the highest mountain in the country, Mount Kosciuszko. “I will definitely be seen at some point by our expats in Australia. I want to conquer the Seven Peaks in the world. They are the highest mountains on each of the seven continents. It’s a mountaineering challenge.”
“Of course our expatriates can come to Greece and get to know each other here” concludes Kiki Tsakaldimi in her interview with the “Greek Herald”.
