Melbourne ends fifth lockdown

Australia’s secondmost populous city Melbourne ended its fifth lockdown on Tuesday with the Victoria state government declaring it had beaten an outbreak of the highly contagious COVID19 delta variant for a second time. The fiveday lockdown across Victoria ended at 11:59 p.m., allowing schools, pubs and restaurants to reopen, Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said. But people will not be allowed to have visitors in their homes for another two weeks.

Sydney, Australia’s most populous city where the delta outbreak began in midJune when a limousine driver was infected while transporting a U.S. air crew from the airport, remains in lockdown indefinitely after more than four weeks. The new outbreak has claimed 10 lives.