SYDNEY: Australia's second-most populous state of Victoria will enter a one-week COVID-19 lockdown, forcing its near 7 million residents to remain home except for essential businesses in a bid to contain a fresh virus cluster.
Victoria state Acting Premier James Merlino told reporters in Melbourne that starting from 11.59 pm local time on Thursday (9.59pm Singapore time), people will only be allowed to leave their homes for essential work, healthcare, grocery shopping, exercise or to take their coronavirus vaccinations.
"We have seen more evidence we're dealing with a highly infectious strain of the virus, a variant of concern, which is running faster than we have ever recorded," said Merlino.
Merlino said contact tracers have identified more than 10,000 primary and secondary contacts who would need to quarantine, test and self-isolate, adding "that number will continue to grow and change".
A fresh cluster of infections in Melbourne detected early this week has swelled to 26 cases after the state reported 12 new cases overnight, while the number of virus-exposed sites rose above 150.
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Officials have traced the latest cluster, the first in the state in more than three months, back to an overseas traveller infected with a variant first found in India, although the virus transmission path is still unclear.
The unnamed Victoria man tested negative after finishing his quarantine in neighbouring South Australia and flew to Melbourne this month but tested positive six days after he arrived.
Victoria endured one of the world's strictest and longest lockdowns last year after a second wave of COVID-19 killed more than 800 people in the state, amounting for 90 per cent of Australia's total deaths since the pandemic began.
Swift contact tracing, snap lockdowns and strict social distancing rules have helped Australia keep its COVID-19 numbers relatively low, with just over 30,000 cases and 910 deaths.
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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMicWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNoYW5uZWxuZXdzYXNpYS5jb20vbmV3cy93b3JsZC9hdXN0cmFsaWEtdmljdG9yaWEtc3RhdGUtb25lLXdlZWstY292aWQtMTktbG9ja2Rvd24tbWVsYm91cm5lLTE0ODk0Mjgy0gEA?oc=5
2021-05-27 01:44:48Z
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