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GREATER Bendigo recorded another 79 cases of COVID-19 on Friday as protesters spend their weekend blocking Canberra traffic.
It came as total numbers of active cases in the municipality dropped below the 800 mark to 769 in the continuation of a downward trend.
Of the new cases, 27 cases were recorded in Bendigo's 3550 postcode.
Thirteen each were found in Eaglehawk's 3556 and Kangaroo Flat's 3556 postcodes.
Another 24 cases were found in the regional 3551 postcode, with a smattering of others around the municipality.
Elsewhere in regional Victoria, the Macedon Ranges Shire recorded 36 new cases, Mount Alexander 17 and the Central Goldfields Shire 13.
The Campaspe Shire had 35 new cases, Gannawarra five and Buloke four.
The Loddon Shire recorded zero new cases.
In Canberra, more than 500 anti-vaxxers have marched towards parliament and briefly blocked traffic.
It is the third weekend that protest activity has occurred in Canberra but crowd numbers are dwindling from a peak of between 10,000 and 15,000 people.
Three separate rallies had been planned for Saturday.
"Don't be too disheartened by the size of the crowd ... we are very spread out today," said one of the protest group live-streamers while filming a small gathering at Glebe Park.
- With the Canberra Times
Earlier:
Victoria has recorded another 6280 new COVID-19 cases ahead of a weekend when dancefloors return.
The Victorian government lifted a slew of restrictions this week as the Omicron wave subsided, including on entertainment venues' dancefloors.
It believes the health system can handle the load.
A total of 365 people spent time in hospital on Friday, with 55 in intensive care and 13 on ventilators.
The state also recorded another 20 deaths.
Of the tests processed, 4214 were rapid antigen tests and 2066 were laboratory PCR tests.
Another 9371 people received a vaccine dose at state-run facilities.
It comes as it was announced Western Australia will reopen its borders from March 3, bringing to an end almost 700 days of seclusion as the state's Omicron outbreak continues to grow.
Premier Mark McGowan said the state was "well-placed" to handle the resumption of quarantine-free travel given the state's high vaccination rates.
He said at a press conference on Friday afternoon there was no prospect of stopping an outbreak which now numbers 794 active cases.
"Eventually there comes a point where the border is ineffective when you get to high case numbers within the state," he said.
"It is plain to see that four weeks of caution has paid dividends. It means it is now far safer to relax our hard border settings."
Once the borders reopen, interstate travellers who are fully-vaccinated - including a third dose if eligible - will be able to travel to WA without quarantining.
Unvaccinated interstate travellers will remain locked out.
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