A six-week lockdown will be imposed on Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city as authorities hope to prevent a second wave of coronavirus infections spreading in the country.
The strict lockdown will be effective starting midnight on Wednesday, post which Melbourne residents won’t be allowed to leave their homes unless it is for grocery shopping, caregiving, exercise or work.
Victoria State Premier Daniel Andrews said the state of Victoria saw another record rise in daily coronavirus cases, with 191 new infections recorded for Tuesday. The state reported its previous high of 127 new cases on Monday.
“We know we're on the cusp of something very, very bad if we don't get on top of this,” Andrews was quoted as saying in a CNN report. He added that the increasing number of cases were unsustainable.
Andres added that if these steps weren’t taken, then the cases would be more than a couple of hundred and spiral well out of control.
Authorities on Monday closed the border between two states—Victoria and New South Wales. “We've talked about this virus being like a public health bushfire. By putting a ring around metropolitan Melbourne, we're essentially putting in place a perimeter to protect regional Victorians,” Andrews said.
About 3,000 residents in the densely populated towers from where 13 of the 191 new cases came, were suddenly put under a total lockdown on Saturday night. They were not allowed to leave their homes for any reason. So far, a total of 69 cases have been detected in the estates that house these residential towers and authorities aim to test every single resident.
The crippled state of Australia’s economy forced PM Scott Morrison’s hand at reopening the country. This shutdown risks prolonging the country’s first recession in three decades.
