Victorian cases numbers rise as state borders close

Victoria reported 134 new infections in the 24 hours to Wednesday morning. Of the new cases, 75 were residents of nine public housing towers, that were earlier this week placed under the country's strictest lockdown so far. Around 3,000 residents have been banned from leaving the buildings, which are under police guard, for five days.

All residents are being tested for COVID-19. Long queues of cars banked up on either side of one of Australia's busiest internal border crossings after it was closed overnight in a bid to contain a fresh outbreak of the coronavirus in the country's second-biggest city.