Melbourne braces for anti-lockdown protests as daily cases hit pandemic high

FILE PHOTO: A lone passenger sits at a tram stop on a mostly-empty city centre street on the first day of a lockdown as the state of Victoria looks to curb the spread of a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Melbourne, Australia, July 16, 2021. REUTERS/Sandra Sanders

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Police in Melbourne prepared for a fourth day of anti-lockdown protests on Thursday and a vaccination hub in the city closed after protesters allegedly abused staff, while COVID-19 cases across the state of Victoria hit a daily record.

Hundreds of protesters have taken to the streets in the city of 5 million since officials earlier this week ordered a two-week closure of building sites and made vaccines mandatory for construction workers to limit the spread of the virus.