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Australia: Victoria orders snap lockdown for 7 days as Covid cases double

WION Web Team
Victoria, AustraliaUpdated: May 27, 2021, 12:23 PM IST
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Photograph:(AFP)

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The lockdown will come into force from midnight and will continue at least for the next seven days

Stay-at-home orders have been passed for all locals and current residents of Australia’s city of Melbourne and the rest of Victoria as the region went into a snap lockdown to control the widespread of the coronavirus.

The orders of a snap lockdown came on Thursday and the authorities have given a few hours to the locals to reach their houses and get essentials.

However, locals have also been advised not to move around too much and stay at the place they are currently residing for at least another week.

The lockdown will come into force from midnight and will continue at least for the next seven days.

This decision was taken as the number of coronavirus cases nearly doubled up in a matter of few hours. The authorities are hoping to break the chain of transmission by imposing this lockdown.

Authorities believe the circuit breaker lockdown is the only way to break the cycle of infections. "Given the circumstances, more than 10,000 primary and secondary contacts, more than 150 exposure sites right across the state of Victoria, Bendigo, on our border, right across metropolitan Melbourne, we need to have this circuit-breaker lockdown. We know it works," acting Premier James Merlino told local media. "We know it makes a difference. We’ve done this before."

He also cautioned people against the new variant which he believes is spreading at a rapid pace. Merlino also asked people to get vaccinated as soon as possible, as the state opened vaccines to anyone above the age of 40. The snap lockdown is to avoid the third wave of coronavirus at all costs, he said.

Merlino also blamed the Commonwealth for the lack of vaccines in the country and claimed there have been a few issues from the Commonwealth in terms of delivery of vaccines. "These are supply issues the commonwealth is responsible for, securing, procuring, and then delivering the supply, so that's been one of problems," he said.

However, he also added that the vaccines are completely safe and the locals should trust the experts and get jabbed as soon as possible to avoid getting infected by the deadly virus.

(With inputs from agencies)