SYDNEY (HRNW) – Australia’s second-biggest city of Melbourne reported a record rise of more than 400 new coronavirus cases on Friday despite a week-old lockdown of more than 5 million residents.
Authorities in the state of Victoria, which surrounds Melbourne, said there were 423 new infections in the metropolitan area and five more in rural parts of the state.
The total was higher than any single daily increase in COVID-19 cases for the entire country since late March.
“We have not turned the corner here, worse than that,” said Victoria’s chief health officer, Brett Sutton.
Melbourne has been experiencing a surge in coronavirus infections since mid-June, after the rest of the country had successfully contained the epidemic.
The Melbourne outbreak was initially blamed on health and security breaches at hotels where returning international travellers were under quarantine.
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