Acting premier and Member for Bendigo East Jacinta Allan thanked Victorian's for taking the fresh COVID-19 outbreak seriously as she commented on the decision to close the Victorian-NSW border.

"The public health advice on New Year's Eve was to move and move quickly, remembering that in previous ten days there was clear advice about the risk of travelling to NSW.

"On December 18 the first advice was given. The decision was taken, because of the spread in NSW, it was best in the best interest of Victorians to close the border.

"I do acknowledge it provided for a difficult 24 or 36 hours for people looking to return from various parts of NSW but 60,000 people (returning) in a two-day period indicated Victorians understood the seriousness of the situation and the need to get home and get tested."

Victorian deputy health officer Allen Cheng said all local transmissions of the virus in Victoria had been traced to the Smile Buffalo Thai restaurant in the Black Rock cluster.

"We are encouraged that all the cases popping up yesterday and throughout all of this are linked, going back to first days one case in Mitchem, one in Mentone and on in Hallam.

"Now we have drawn links to them and the new cases detected in people who are close contacts, we have identified those networks.

"It's still really early days and if further cases pop-up it could be cause concern, which is why we are wearing masks and limiting household gatherings."

Ms Allan also recognised the efforts of testing staff who returned early from holidays and annual leave to assist with testing.

She said 88 per cent of people were receiving test results within 24 hours with 99 per cent getting results within two days.

10.45am

More than 60,000 Victorians returned from NSW over the New Year's Eve period.

Victoria's COVID-19 testing manager Jeroen Weimar said a large number of those travellers would have been through the testing process already.

"Over 75 per cent of people who returned from NSW in the previous weeks (from December 18) got tested very quickly," he said.

"We are continuing that process with this 60,000 people and in the next two days expect the majority of people to have got through."

Mr Weimar's comments come as he was questioned by media this morning about the long wait times being faced by people trying to get a coronavirus test after returning from NSW or visited an exposure site in Melbourne.

"I appreciate and understand there is frustration," he said. "This outbreak started in the period between Christmas and New Year's Eve.

"The people who work in the (testing) system have worked hard for months and some have taken deserved leave.

"We had to gear up and mobilise. We stepped it up again yesterday and will again today but it is not something you can turn on at the flick of switch.

"We are confident we can support the numbers we are seeing at (testing sites). We just ask people to be patient."

Mr Weimar said asked people to persevere and be patient if they were waiting to be tested.

"Our focus is on getting capacity on the ground to get people tested," he said. "Unfortunately we have to ask people to be patient and work with us. We encourage people to prepare for a wait and make sure they have something to do

"We are expecting another 8000 test results through today from yesterday's testing and they will be in tomorrow's numbers.

"This outbreak has come right between Christmas and New Year's Eve, when Victorians are taking leave. We have brought a large number (of staff) back from their leave plans and thank the people did that. That's why we have delivered 25,000 test results in the past (24 hours)."

He said Victoria's testing numbers were moving beyond the number usually seen on weekends.

"For the 60 'zero days' there were about 13,000 test a day," Mr Weimar said. "(Currently) it is more than double what we have been doing last few months.

"I would love to be in a position with short wait times but (there has been a) strong and intense response from people returning from NSW and who responded to exposure sites."

9.50am

Victoria's active coronavirus case tally is now at 32 following three new cases in the past 24 hours.

All three cases were locally acquired.

Since yesterday, there have been 22,477 test results received.

More news

In Bendigo yesterday, returned travellers again lined up for hours in an effort to get a COVID-19 test.

The influx of people wanting tests forced Bendigo Health to extend its clinic hours on Saturday.

Victoria's COVID-19 testing manager Jeroen Weimar is expected to address the media at 10am.

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