The outbreak of COVID in St Basil’s aged care home in the Melbourne suburb of Fawkner and how it was handled was a big deal in July 2020. The virus infected 94 mostly Greek-speaking residents and the same number of staff – things got so bad the Victorian Government stepped in until the facility was evacuated 4 weeks later. In total, 45 residents died from COVID, making it one of the biggest clusters of deaths of the pandemic in Australia, and it’s thought that another 5 died from neglect during the month. After 23 months of investigations and the home’s managers refusing to explain what happened, Victoria’s workplace safety agency has laid 9 charges for breaches of staff safety. Each carries a fine of up to $1.49 million, and a hearing kicks off next month. A separate coronial inquest into the residents’ deaths is ongoing.