Melbourne to overtake Buenos Aires as world’s most locked-down city on October 4

As cases climb and restrictions keep dragging on, Melbourne will officially become the world’s most locked-down city on October 4.

Melbourne is now guaranteed to become the most locked-down city in the world by a long margin, with stay-at-home orders extended for at least another month.

If lockdown ends as planned on October 26, Melbourne will have spent 267 days in hard lockdown since March last year – a total of nearly 9 months.

It will beat the next most locked-down city in the world, Buenos Aires, by 22 days.

The Herald Sun previously reported that Buenos Aires had been locked down for 234 days.

However, the city was plunged back into lockdown for a total of 11 days in recent months, taking its total to 245 days.

Melbourne will surpass the Argentinian city’s record as the world’s most locked-down city on Monday, October 4.

Stay-at-home orders have been extended in Melbourne for at least another month. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

The number of days each city has spent in lockdown around the world is hard to monitor as each city has different definitions of stay-at-home orders, however, the numbers are based on the best available data.

While Buenos Aires last year endured 234 straight days of lockdown, from March until November, Melbourne has one of the highest numbers of individual lockdowns in the world.

The current lockdown will have lasted 82 days – just shy of three months – if it ends on time, compared to 111 days in Melbourne’s second lockdown last year.

Behind Buenos Aires are Dublin at 227 days in lockdown and London at 207.

Melbourne joined cities including Paris to impose a curfew. Picture: Josie Hayden

London marked “freedom day” on July 19, with a near-complete reopening of businesses at full capacity.

At the time, 68 per cent of Britons had received two vaccination doses.

Melbourne’s lockdown has been among the strictest in the world, joining cities including Paris to impose a curfew.

It contributed to the city sliding six places to eighth in the list of the world’s most liveable cities this year.

Originally published as Melbourne to overtake Buenos Aires as world’s most locked-down city on October 4