Melbourne declares 'state of disaster' as coronavirus sweeps through Victoria

Australia on Sunday introduced sweeping new measures to control a growing coronavirus outbreak in its second-biggest city, including an overnight curfew and a ban on weddings for the first time during the pandemic. Despite a lockdown that began in early July, Melbourne has continued to report hundreds of new cases daily, and authorities said the city's residents would now face a curfew from 8 pm to 5 am for the next six weeks. Declaring a 'state of disaster' on Sunday, Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said the state capital would move to Stage 4 restrictions until September 13 given 'unacceptably high' levels of community transmission.