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Australia's Victoria enacts strict new measures as coronavirus cases surge

Australian soldiers patrol the streets on Monday of Melbourne, Australia. They and police are imposing the city's 8pm–5am curfew that came into effect Sunday night. Photo: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

Victoria's premier Dan Andrews said Monday all retailers except for essential services like grocery stores in state capital Melbourne must shut for six weeks, effective Aug. 7, as cases continue to surge in Australia's second-most populous state.

The big picture: A day after he declared a disaster in Victoria to enacted tougher measures, Andrews told a briefing, "we need to dramatically reduce people moving in the community." Restrictions including a nightly curfew in Melbourne began Sunday. Andrews confirmed 429 new cases and 13 deaths from COVID-19 — equaling the state and national death toll record set last month. Australia looked set to suppress COVID-19 in May. Most places have had few or no cases, but Victoria's have spiked in recent weeks.

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Rebecca Falconer
Updated Nov 10, 2020 - World

In photos: Coronavirus restrictions grow across Europe

A waiter stands on an empty street in downtown Lisbon on Nov. 9, after Portugal introduced a night-time curfew for 70% of the population, including the capital and also the coastal city of Porto. It'll last for at least two weeks, per the BBC. Photo: Patricia De Melo Moreira/AFP via Getty Images

Portugal and Hungary have become the latest European countries to impose partial lockdowns, with curfews going into effect overnight. Governments across the continent are imposing more restrictions in attempts to curb COVID-19 spikes.

The big picture: Over 9.2 million cases have been reported to the European Centre for Disease Control. Per the ECDC, France has the most (almost 1.8 million) followed by Spain (over 1.3 million) and the United Kingdom (nearly 1.2 million). The COVID death rate per 100,000 of the population is highest in the Czech Republic (25), followed by Belgium (19) and Hungary (10.4).

See photos (<1 min. read)Arrow
Axios
Updated Jan 24, 2021 - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

  1. Health: U.S. surpasses 25 million COVID cases.
  2. Vaccine: Cities launch efforts to vaccinate the homeless.
  3. Politics: Deborah Birx went "on the road" for local COVID efforts to avoid White House censorship — Sanders says Democrats will push coronavirus relief package through with simple majority.
  4. Media: Why made-for-TV moments like Amanda Gorman matter during the pandemic.
  5. World: Brazil begins distributing AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine
Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Rebecca Falconer
Nov 11, 2020 - Health

CDC: Masks protect wearers as well as others from coronavirus

Photo: Photo: Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images

If you wear a mask, you're protecting yourself as well as others from COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in an update on Tuesday.

Why it matters: "Adopting universal masking policies can help avert future lockdowns, especially if combined with other non-pharmaceutical interventions such as social distancing, hand hygiene, and adequate ventilation," per the CDC.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow