NSW recorded 1288 new COVID cases in the overnight reporting period as well as seven more deaths as the state surpassed the seven million vaccines mark.
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The deaths include two men in their 80s, a man in his 50s, a woman in her 70s, a man in his 70s and a woman in her 80s.
Locally, there were no new cases reported on the Mid North Coast.
A drive-through testing clinic has opened at Lake Cathie after yesterday's (September 1) triple positive sewage sample alert for the Port Macquarie-Hastings region.
Positive samples have been returned from Port Macquarie, Dungoban and Bonny Hills sewage treatment plants. Those samples were taken on August 30.
It is the third instance where samples have yielded positive results at the Bonny Hills wastewater treatment plant prompting urgent calls for people living in the area to come forward for testing.
Mid North Coast Local Health District (MNCLHD) chief executive Stewart Dowrick said the COVID testing regime at these facilities is conducted daily and is so sensitive, the detection of virus fragments could be the result of just one person who does not know they have the virus, or who has not yet been tested.
The Lake Cathie clinic opened at 10am Thursday in a bid to test as many people in the regions south of Port Macquarie as quickly as possible. From Friday, the testing clinic will be open daily from 8am.
The turn-around time for sewage testing is usually two to three days, Mr Dowrick said, but samples will be taken daily. Sewage testing has expanded across the region to Bellingen and Kempsey.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian warned that October will be the worst month for the number of people that lose their lives and also for the rate of people in hospital.
She also said that NSW is expected to become the first state or territory to hit 70 per cent vaccination, Ms Berejiklian said.
And with that she announced that exercise limits would be lifted in Sydney's local government areas of concern, bringing them into line with the rest of the state.
Of the 1,288 locally acquired cases reported to 8pm last night:
- 445 are from Western Sydney Local Health District (LHD)
- 387 are from South Western Sydney LHD
- 149 are from Sydney LHD
- 101 are from South Eastern Sydney LHD
- 82 are from Nepean Blue Mountains LHD
- 31 are from Northern Sydney LHD
- 23 are from Western NSW LHD
- 22 are from Illawarra Shoalhaven LHD
- seven are from Central Coast LHD
- five are from Far West LHD
- four are from Hunter New England LHD
- 11 are in a correctional centre, and
- 21 cases are yet to be assigned to an LHD.
NSW Health's ongoing sewage surveillance program has recently detected fragments of the virus that causes COVID-19 at sewage treatment plants across NSW. Fragments were detected in Bega and Cooma in Southern NSW LHD and Bomaderry in Illawarra Shoalhaven LHD.
In Victoria there were 176 new cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to midnight yesterday.
Yesterday NSW reported 1116 locally-acquired COVID-19 cases and four deaths.
Get tested
Mid North Coast Local Health District (MNCLHD) has advised that the drive through COVID-19 testing clinic at Port Macquarie Regional Stadium on Boundary Street is now open extended hours from 8am to 6pm daily.
There is also a drive through testing site at Kempsey's Riverside Park reserve at the Austral Street boat ramp open to 8am-6pm weekdays and 8am-4pm on weekends.
MNCLHD urges anyone feeling unwell with even with the mildest of symptoms to come forward for testing.
To find a testing clinic near you, visit the NSW Government website www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/health-and-wellbeing/clinics
Get vaccinated
The Mid North Coast Local Health District is vaccinating its staff and eligible members of the community when appointments become available.
The local health district has moved its COVID-19 vaccination clinic from Port Macquarie Base Hospital to 35 Grant Street.
Go to the online COVID-19 vaccine eligibility checker to find out when and where you can receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
You can also speak with your local participating pharmacist or GP about the vaccine that is right for you.
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