Australia's Victoria state calls for patience on end of COVID-19 lockdown

FILE PHOTO: A healthcare worker administers a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) test at a drive-through testing centre on the first day of a seven-day lockdown, as the state of Victoria looks to curb the spread of an outbreak in Melbourne, Australia, May 28, 2021. REUTERS/Sandra Sanders

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia's Victoria state authorities said on Tuesday that it was still unclear whether a snap one-week lockdown to contain a fresh COVID-19 outbreak would end as planned on Thursday night, as the state grapples with a growing virus outbreak.

Australia's second-most populous state was plunged into the lockdown on May 27 after the state reported its first locally transmitted cases in nearly three months early last week, forcing its near seven million residents to remain home except for essential business.