Coronavirus

Melbourne, Australia, Lifts Lockdown After Recording Zero New Cases

Salons and tattoo shops can reopen as long as customers and employees are wearing masks.

Melbourne, Australia, Lifts Lockdown After Recording Zero New Cases
Andy Brownbill / AP
SMS

Lockdown restrictions have been lifted in Melbourne, Australia, as the city records no new cases for the first time in more than four months.

The premier of Victoria said: "Now is the time to open up. Now is the time to congratulate every single Victorian for staying the course. Now is the time to thank every single Victorian family for being guided by the data, the science and the doctors, not letting our frustration get the better of us but, instead, proving equal to this wicked enemy."

At midnight Tuesday, restaurants, cafes and bars were allowed to open, and some outdoor contact sports can resume.

Beauty, personal services, and tattoo shops can also reopen with customers and employees wearing masks.

Melbourne was the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Australia. The city has been under strict lockdown measures since early July.