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This live blog has now ended. Please check back in the morning for the latest coronavirus updates for Sunraysia. In the meantime, you can find an up-to-date list of exposure sites in Victoria here. A list of exposure sites in NSW can be found here or a map is available here.

Tuesday's COVID wrap: the basics

There were 24 new COVID-19 cases reported in Mildura on Tuesday, taking the LGA's total to 113 active cases. Across Victoria on Tuesday there were 1466 new cases and eight deaths.

One new case in Dareton was confirmed on Tuesday. There are now 17 active cases in Dareton. 

NSW recorded 360 new locally acquired cases and eight deaths on Tuesday.

There are several exposure sites in Mildura, Red Cliffs, Dareton and Buronga. You can find an up-to-date list of exposure sites in Victoria here. Victoria is phasing out publication of tier 2 exposure sites, but tier 1 sites will still be published. People who have visited exposure sites will be contacted by the Department of Health, so remembering to sign in using QR codes is increasingly important.

A list of exposure sites in NSW can be found here or a map is available here.

Mildura cracks 90% first dosed

12.25pm: More than 90 per cent of Mildura residents have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to the most recent data.

The federal health department's latest figures for vaccination in local government areas showed 90.3 per cent of people in Mildura had rolled up their sleeves for at least one dose, while 54.6 per cent were fully vaccinated.

In Tuesday's Victorian press conference, Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton also praised Mildura residents for their strong vaccine uptake in recent days.

"Mildura had the highest growth in first-dose vaccination coverage of anywhere in Victoria in the past week," Prof Sutton said.

Member for Mildura Ali Cupper also applauded the impressive performance.

"These are incredible milestones being achieved before our eyes - more than half of us are now fully vaccinated, and nine out of every ten people have taken the first step," she said.

“This is an overwhelming majority and is incredibly encouraging, showing that our rate of vaccination isn’t slowing down, if anything it’s speeding up.

“These people have made the conscious decision to protect themselves, protect the community, and keep themselves out of hospital.”

Elsewhere in Sunraysia, Wentworth Shire was at 85.1 per cent single-dosed and 60.5 per cent fully vaccinated and 82.5 per cent of people in Balranald were first dosed and 59.3 per cent double-jabbed.

Meanwhile in the Swan Hill Rural City Council area, more than 95 per cent of people had their first dose and 67 per cent were fully vaccinated.

Chaffey Secondary to become vaccination hub

11.50am: Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton flagged Mildura's Chaffey Secondary College as being among a list of 11 new "school pop-ups" which will offer vaccines to communities.

"These pop-ups are open to school communities, obviously, but they are also open to everyone in the local area," Prof Sutton said.

"So please use those pop-ups as an opportunity to get vaccinated, especially as kids return to school.

"These pop-ups are administering Pfizer and AstraZeneca.

"All of them will accept walk-ups with no appointment."

Vaccinations will be available to anyone aged 12 and over at Chaffey Secondary College this Saturday and Sunday from 10am-6pm. The clinic will have access for people of all abilities.

First and second doses are available and, while walk-ins are welcome, bookings are preferred. To book, call Silverline Health Care Mildura on 5055 5000 and tell them you want to book a vaccination at Chaffey Secondary College.

Mildura records 24 new cases as LGA cracks 90% first dosed

11.45am: There were 24 new COVID-19 cases recorded in Mildura on Tuesday, taking the LGA's total to 113 active cases.

 The cases in Mildura were among 1144 cases active in regional Victoria.

There were about 900 tests done in Mildura on Monday, and about 3300 have been done since Saturday - that's one in 10 people in Mildura.

Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said in "good news ... Mildura had the highest growth in first-dose vaccination coverage of anywhere in Victoria in the past week".

"It's now tipped over 90 per cent for the over-16 population," he said.

"It's been really encouraging to see communities come forward for vaccination."

Prof Sutton also noted the high rate of engagement with Monday night's community forum.

New case in Dareton

11.05am: One new COVID-19 case has been confirmed in Dareton, Far West Local Health District (FWLHD) said on Tuesday morning. 

The case is a household contact of an existing case. It was the only new case to be reported in the Far West up to 8pm on Monday night and takes Dareton's total number of active cases to 17.

There are now 41 active cases in FWLHD, including the 17 in Dareton, 23 in Broken Hill and one in Menindee.

For the first time since the town's outbreak started in August, there are now no known positive cases in Wilcannia, after the remaining two recovered on Monday.

Across NSW, there were 360 new cases on Tuesday.

More Sunraysia schools shut down due to COVID

10.50am: Sunraysia Daily understands staff and students at more Mildura schools have been directed to test and isolate after COVID-19 cases were uncovered in the school communities.

In a message to parents, Mildura South Primary said students who returned to classrooms for the first week of Term 4 had been identified as tier 2 contacts. If they were not at school last week, students were not considered to be contacts.

"As your child was on site last week they have been classified as a Tier 2 contact to a positive case of Covid," the statement said.

"They must be tested and isolate until a negative test result has been received. Once the school has been reopened, evidence of that negative test must be provided before they are allowed back on site. As it is a Tier 2, family members are not required to isolate at this stage."

Sunraysia Daily understands Mildura Primary School is also closed under similar circumstances.

More to come.

Victorian press conference

10.45am: Victoria's COVID-19 press conference was scheduled to start at 11am. Health Minister Martin Foley and Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton are Tuesday's headline acts. You won't see COVID response commander Jeroen Weimar as he was still in Mildura this morning.

Monday's blog

10am: Need to catch up on what happened on Monday? More than 2500 people tuned in for Monday night's community forum, which featured Victoria's COVID response commander and several local health figures answering the community's questions about the region's COVID-19 outbreak. We put together some of the highlights.

Also on Monday, mRNA vaccines were opened up to older Victorians, exposure sites were listed and 40 new cases were recorded in Sunraysia. Read all the details in yesterday's blog.

Exposure sites in Sunraysia

Mildura

• Chloe's Nails and Beauty, 210 Deakin Avenue, Mildura - Saturday October 2, 10am-12.10pm - tier 1
• CrossFit Motion 136, 136 Eleventh Street, Mildura - Monday October 4, 9.30am-11am - tier 1
• Davo's General Store & Take-Away, 285 San Mateo Avenue, Mildura - Monday October 4, 2.30pm-3.20pm - tier 1
• Totally Workwear, 70 Lime Avenue, Mildura - Tuesday October 5, 4.55pm-5.43pm - tier 1
• CrossFit Motion 136, 136 Eleventh Street, Mildura - Wednesday October 6, 5.15pm-6.45pm - tier 1

Red Cliffs 

• The Shed Cafe, 59 Jacaranda Street, Red Cliffs - Sunday October 3, 10am-10.45am - tier 1

Tier 1 - Get tested immediately and quarantine for 14 days from exposure.

You can find an up-to-date list of exposure sites in Victoria here. Victoria is phasing out publication of tier 2 exposure sites, but tier 1 sites will still be published. People who have visited exposure sites will be contacted by the Department of Health, so remembering to sign in using QR codes is increasingly important.

Wentworth Shire

• Shell Buronga, 141 Sturt Highway, Buronga - Sunday October 3, 11.10am-11.15am
• Dareton Mini-Mart, 19 Tapio Street, Dareton - Wednesday October 6, 3pm-4pm
• IGA Dareton Plus Liquor, 31-37 Tapio Street, Dareton - Thursday October 7, 1.40pm-1.50pm and Friday October 8, 8.10am-8.20am

People who visited any of these sites at the times listed should get tested immediately and self-isolate until they receive a negative result.

A list of exposure sites in NSW can be found here or a map is available here.

COVID-19 testing locations in Sunraysia

Victoria:

• Old Aerodrome Ovals: From 8.30am to 5.30pm daily
• Barratt & Smith Pathology, 127 Langtree Avenue (enter Shillidays Lane): 8am to 4pm Monday to Friday and from 8am to noon on Saturday
• In-home testing and vaccination are also available through MDAS

Testing is for people who are symptomatic, have been contacted by the Victorian Government to be tested, or have been to an exposure site once they are released.

NSW:

• George Gordon Oval, Dareton: 10am-2.30pm daily
• Alcheringa Oval, Gol Gol: 10am-2.30pm daily
• Wentworth Show Grounds: 9am-3pm Monday-Friday and 10am-2pm Saturday and Sunday