Melbourne’s lockdown will ease as planned from tonight but a mask mandate will remain in place.
“I can confirm that the easing of restrictions that we announced yesterday will proceed as planned from 11.59pm tonight, with one small exception for Melbourne,” Acting Premier James Merlino said today.
“Masks will continue to be required to be worn outdoors in all circumstances.”
Victoria recorded four new local cases of coronavirus to midnight.
The new locally acquired cases are from the same household in Reservoir, in Melbourne’s north, and investigations into the source of the infections are underway.
Deputy Chief Health Officer Allen Cheng said they were not close contacts of known infections.
“They’re not identified as close contacts, none of them has given a history of being at an exposure site,” Professor Cheng said.
“The first man, a man in his 80s, was tested on June 8 and got his result yesterday. The other members of the household tested positive yesterday as well.
“We’ve already tested several close contacts of these cases outside of the household and they’ve all come back negative but obviously will remain in quarantine.”
Professor Cheng said the continued requirement to wear masks outside was based on concern around mystery infection.
“These new cases are really the strongest reminder that we are, by no means, out of the woods yet,” he said.
“Over the last fortnight, there have been very limited opportunities for people to transmit infection during lockdown, and obviously what I am anxious about is whoever gave the infection to both these groups is identified quickly and doesn’t have the opportunity to transmit to other people.”
Mr Merlino said wearing masks outdoors was a small but effective price to pay.
“We are used to it, we know it works, and as we come out of this period and lockdown, while we are driving these new cases to ground, I think it is a logical and common-sense step to take,” he said.
“This is a small price to pay to make sure that we can proceed with this careful easing out of lockdown.”
