Australia to close border between
New South Wales and Victoria
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| Police stand guard outside a locked-down public housing tower in Melbourne. The capital of Australia's Victria state has seen a new spike in case of Covid-19 (AFP) |
Australia will close the border between the states of New
South Wales and Victoria beginning on Wednesday, disrupting movement between
Melbourne and Sydney, the nation’s two largest cities.
By Vatican News
The premiers of Australia’s two most-populous states have
announced that the internal border between New South Wales and Victoria will be
closed beginning on Wednesday, as a precautionary measure to halt the spread of
the novel coronavirus.
Daniel Andrews, the premier of Victoria, announced the
decision on Monday, saying, “It is the smart call, the right call at this time,
given the significant challenges we face in containing the virus.”
Outbreak in Melbourne
The decision to close the border follows a new outbreak in
Melbourne, Victoria’s capital city and the second-largest city in Australia.
Victoria recorded the highest-ever daily increase in Covid-19 cases, with 127
new cases and two deaths confirmed. Officials expressed concern that many of
the new cases in Melbourne are the result of community transmission.
Previously, most cases were contracted overseas or from travelers returning
from foreign countries.
Police have been enforcing strict social distancing orders
in 30 suburbs around Melbourne, and nine public housing towers are in complete
lockdown.
Agreement to close the border
Victoria’s border with the neighbouring state of South
Australia has been closed since 22 March, but officials have been hesitant to
close the border between Victoria and New South Wales, and the federal
government has discouraged internal border closings. The decision to close the
border was taken after consultation between the premiers of the two states and
Australia's prime minister.
The last time the border was closed was more than one
hundred years ago, during the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1919.
The closing is likely to affect Australia’s economy, which
is entering a recession for the first time in almost thirty years. New South Wales
premier Gladys Berijiklian says there is no timetable yet for re-opening the
border.
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