Australia's 2nd-most populous state to lock down after COVID spike
15 July 2021
Victoria, Australia's second-most populous state, will enter a five-day lockdown just before midnight to combat a growing COVID-19 outbreak, officials announced on Thursday.
Why it matters: It will be the fifth time such restrictions have been imposed on residents in Victoria's state capital, Melbourne — who last year endured one of the world's longest lockdowns (112 days), when Melbourne was Australia's pandemic epicenter.
The big picture: Australia had largely suppressed coronavirus outbreaks, but it's now for the first time in months dealing with outbreaks in multiple regions simultaneously.
- This is driven largely by the B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant — which led to Sydney, New South Wales, entering a full lockdown on June 26. These restrictions in Australia's most populous city have been extended until July 30.
- Melbourne last exited a lockdown on June 10, though some restrictions remained in place — such as wearing masks outside.
By the numbers: NSW has a total of 929 active cases after 65 more infections were confirmed Thursday; Victoria confirmed seven new cases, taking the total to 18 active cases and the state of Queensland recorded three new infections.
What they're saying: "This will be a hard lockdown similar to or identical to what we did a couple of weeks ago," Victoria's Premier Dan Andrews said at a news conference.
- "It is essentially a repeat of the successful strategy from couple of weeks ago. That was successful then and this will be successful now."
Editor's note: This article has been updated with the latest case numbers.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.