Thousands of people have flocked to Melbourne beaches to celebrate Cup Day as temperatures threaten to break records.
A top of 30 degrees is now forecast for Melbourne and if temperatures exceed 30.2 degrees, it will be the hottest Melbourne Cup Day since 1969.
The overall record was 35 degrees in 1902.
Melburnians have packed out beaches, including Williamstown beach in the city’s inner south-west, as authorities warned today for people to abide by COVID-19 restrictions.
Beachgoers have been told to stay at least a ‘towel length’ apart from other groups, with masks to be worn at all times except when in the ocean or walking to and from the water.
Beaches, parks and gardens will have a heavy police presence today, with officers not hesitating to hand out fines to those breaching restrictions.
Infringements will also be issued to those drinking alcohol in public spaces where it is banned, like the St Kilda foreshore.
Victoria’s COVID-19 testing commander Jeroen Weimar said today was a day of zero coronavirus cases and “good weather”, but this did not mean people could drop their guard during festivities.
He believes there could still be a “significant level” of undetected coronavirus infections in the state, despite Victoria recording zero cases over four consecutive days.
“We are not over this by any means,” he said.
“We still believe there are significant levels of COVID-19 cases out there in our community.”
Melburnians snapped up tables at restaurants, cafes and pubs today, with majority of venues booked out across the city.
The Smith pub in Prahran was booked out for Cup Day within hours of bookings being made available.
“We sold out very quickly,” spokesperson Andrew Croucher said.
“It was only a couple of hours and the tickets were gone.”
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