Australia has weathered the coronavirus pandemic better than many countries. (File)
Sydney:
The border between the two most populous states in Australia will close from Tuesday for an indefinite period, Prime Minister of Victoria Daniel Andrews announced on Monday following an epidemic of coronavirus in his state.
The move marks the first closure of the border with neighboring New South Wales in 100 years – authorities last blocked movement between the two states in 1919 during the Spanish flu pandemic.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Melbourne, the capital of Victoria, has increased in recent days, prompting authorities to enforce strict social distancing orders in 30 suburbs and to completely lock out nine towers of social housing.
The state reported 127 new COVID-19 infections overnight, its highest day-long peak since the start of the pandemic. He also reported a death, the first nationally in more than two weeks, bringing the country’s total to 105.
“It’s the smart call, the right call right now, given the significant challenges we face in containing the virus,” Andrews told reporters in Melbourne as he announced the border closure.
The closure, however, is likely to be a blow to Australia’s economic recovery as it enters its first recession in nearly three decades.
Andrews said the decision to close the border, effective at 11:59 p.m. local time on Tuesday, was made jointly with Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Premier NSW Gladys Berejiklian. The only other internal border of Victoria, with the State of South Australia, is already closed.
Australia has weathered the coronavirus pandemic better than many countries, with just 8,500 cases to date, but the Melbourne epidemic has sounded the alarm. The country reported an average of 109 cases per day in the past week, compared to an average of 9 cases per day in the first week of June.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
