Covid Lockdown In Australia's Melbourne Extended By A Week

Five million Melbourne residents were due to exit a seven-day lockdown just before midnight Thursday, but were ordered to remain at home because of concerns about the spread of the virus.

A coronavirus lockdown of Australia's second-biggest city will be extended by another seven days, authorities announced Wednesday, as they attempt to stamp out a cluster of cases in Melbourne. Five million Melbourne residents were due to exit a seven-day lockdown just before midnight Thursday, but were ordered to remain at home because of concerns about the spread of the virus. "We've got to run this thing to ground otherwise people will die," Victoria's acting state Premier James Merlino said, adding they were dealing with a virus variant "quicker and more contagious than we have ever seen before". The outbreak is believed to have begun when a traveller infected with the Kappa variant returned to Australia.