Coronavirus Victoria: Melbourne hit with six-week lockdown as 191 new cases confirmed

Melbourne has been hit with a six-week lockdown after a record number of coronavirus cases, with residents only allowed to leave home for four reasons.

Melbourne will enter a six-week lockdown at midnight tomorrow, after the state recorded another record spike in COVID-19 cases.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews made the announcement this afternoon, telling reporters Victorians “have to be realistic about the circumstances that we confront”.

“That is why the public health team has advised me to reimpose stage three stay-at-home restrictions, staying at home except for the four reasons to leave, effective from midnight tomorrow night for a period of six weeks,” he said.

The lockdown applies to all of metropolitan Melbourne, as well as Mitchell Shire.

The “four reasons to leave” are to shop for food and other essential items; attend work or school (if they can’t do so from home); medical or caregiving; and exercise – though it must be inside the metropolitan area.

“The most discretionary of those four reasons is, in fact, going for what should be daily exercise,” Mr Andrews said.

“It is not an opportunity to run a marathon or to be doing a five or six-hour hike hundreds of kilometres away from home and into regional Victoria where there aren’t cases. Even if you were to follow all the rules when you were there, if you have the virus it will travel with you. It is just an unacceptable risk.”

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Statement from the Premier on Stay at Home restrictions for metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire. pic.twitter.com/7tc3esHZnH

— Dan Andrews (@DanielAndrewsMP) July 7, 2020

Victoria’s chief health officer Brett Sutton said Victorians have got “six very difficult weeks ahead of us”.

Victorian health authorities confirmed another 191 cases were recorded overnight, bringing the state’s total to 2824 after 27 previous cases were reclassified.

It marks the biggest daily increase the state has seen throughout the whole pandemic.

Mr Andrews said there will be no change to the rules in regional Victoria, “but there are still rules and they need to be followed”.

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Medical staff prepare to enter the Flemington public housing estate after it was put into lockdown on Saturday. Picture: Andrew Henshaw/NCA NewsWire

Mr Andrews said the lockdown is an opportunity for Victorians to “reset” and “work together”.

“We can’t just go back to normal, despite the fact we all want to. We have got to find a COVID-19 normal,” he said.

“That means you can’t pick and choose which rules you follow. You can’t let your frustration get the better of you. We've all got to do the right thing.

“Otherwise we will not just have tragedy but we will certainly have a prolonged period of really impactful restrictions. These and potentially more.

“This is an opportunity to reset. This is an opportunity to work together. And we’re all obliged. There’s an obligation to do the right thing. For your family. For every family. Please follow these rules. There’s simply no acceptable alternative.”

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has refused to rule out a statewide lockdown for Victoria. Picture: James Ross/AAP

This morning, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt refused to rule out the possibility of more restrictions.

Speaking on Nine’s Today, Mr Hunt said the main focus was on Melbourne but tactics may have to be reassessed if cases continue to grow.

“I don’t think that anybody can rule out that if the disease continues to spread, there could be further restrictions,” he told the program.

“I think it is very important to be open and honest about that. At this stage it appears primarily urban Victoria.

“But we actually have to respond to the facts as they occur and we’ve always identified this notion of rings of containment, of isolating the hotspots and then working out from there.”

He said the outbreak in Victoria was “very serious”.

“To have the unprecedented closure of the border, not done in a hundred years, that is a sign that we have seven states and territories with effectively zero community transmission, one state, in particular, the north and the west of Melbourne, with a very serious outbreak,” Mr Hunt said.

Six days ago new lockdown restrictions came into effect for 10 postcodes across Melbourne, with residents only allowed to leave their homes for work or school, care or care giving, exercise or buying food and essentials.

On Saturday two additional postcodes, 3031 and 3051, were also placed under lockdown.

Residents in nine public housing towers in the city have also been placed on a “hard lockdown” and ordered to stay in their homes.

Yesterday, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews warned of a statewide lockdown if people didn’t follow the current restrictions.

“This is serious, this is real, and no Victorian has any excuse but to take this seriously. Otherwise, we will finish up in a situation where all postcodes are locked down. No-one wants that and no-one through their actions and the choices they make should make that more likely, should contribute to that outcome,” he said.

“It isn’t too much to ask that people just use common sense and good judgment. It is real, it is serious, it’s not over. I need each of you to do the right thing.

“Otherwise, everyone is going to be back in their home in a lockdown. That’s what’s going to happen.”

His warning came after the state recorded 127 new cases, breaking the previous daily record of 111 cases back in March.