Victoria records 92 new local cases of coronavirus as lockdown extended beyond September 2

Victoria’s lockdown won’t end as scheduled next week after recording 92 new local cases of coronavirus.

Victoria’s sixth coronavirus lockdown will not end as scheduled next Thursday after the state recorded 92 new locally acquired infections on Sunday.

Just 63 cases could be linked to existing outbreaks, while 29 remained under investigation.

Premier Daniel Andrews said too many cases had been out in the community while they were sick, and has sparked health officials to extend the lockdown beyond September 2.

But he said there was not yet any advice from the chief health officer as to what the next date would be for a possible end date to the lockdown.

“As soon as we get advice and decisions are made, we will announce and give people as much notice as we can … it is not getting to the point where we have 1000 cases a day and sadly, I think NSW will have 1000 patients in hospital,” he told reporters on Sunday morning.

“We are avoiding that, but we still have too many cases that are in the community for too long for us to be able to open up and give back to Victorians, whether it be in Melbourne or across the state.”

A total of 51,030 tests were conducted in the past 24 hours, while 31,436 vaccine doses were administered.

Victoria’s lockdown won’t end on September 2. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Crosling

Two-thirds of Victoria’s 92 local cases on Sunday were associated within Melbourne’s northern and western suburbs.

Covid-19 commander Jeroen Weimar said it was “by far” the largest concentration of cases outside the Shepparton outbreak.

“We think and we know there are multiple chains of transmission to give us those roughly 500 cases,” he said.

Mr Weimar also warned the virus continued to rapidly spread among the young.

A total of 300 people under the age of 20 are among Victoria’s 773 active Covid-19 cases, he said.

Mr Weimar further detailed 171 people under the age of 10 and 131 in their teens – between 10 and 19 – had also contracted the virus.

There were also 300 people infected aged between 20 and 39.

Victorian Covid-19 commander Jeroen Weimar says two-thirds of Sunday’s cases were linked to Melbourne’s north and west. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Luis Ascui

Of Sunday’s 63 linked cases, 12 were connected to the Broadmeadows cluster, 12 infections were related to the Newport outbreak and there were four cases linked to Altona Woolworths.

There were also nine cases among households connected to Glenroy West Primary, Al-Taqwa College and Illim College, one new case in an apartment site on Flinders St and one case linked to the Port Melbourne cluster.

A new positive case had also emerged in Traralgon, with health officials confident that person acquired the infection at a funeral in Melbourne.

Originally published as Victoria records 92 new local cases of coronavirus as lockdown extended beyond September 2