Two more Victorians with reported links to a bayside Thai restaurant have tested positive to coronavirus in NSW.
The duo left Victoria on December 30 and travelled to the South Coast region of NSW, visiting a hotel and cafe before getting tested, NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant said on Friday.
The two are back in Victoria now and understood to be among 170 close contacts of eight earlier locally transmitted cases, believed to be linked back to outbreaks in NSW.
It was not immediately clear when they were notified about being close contacts.
They are not yet officially counted in Victoria's community transmission case numbers, which remain at eight.
Victorian testing manager Jeroen Weimar said all eight cases are connected, with links back to the Buffalo Smile Thai restaurant in Black Rock where three of the positive cases dined.
"We now have two separate groups of people who are unknown to each other who were adjacent with each other in the restaurant," he said.
A NSW returned traveller was also at that restaurant.
Health Minister Martin Foley said that was the primary line of investigation for the outbreak.
No link has been found between the eight cases and any other known infections and genomic testing is underway to confirm if the traveller is the root of the outbreak.
Mr Weimar said 170 primary contacts of those eight cases are the major concern, and hundreds of secondary contacts are also being asked to get tested and self-isolate for 14 days.
"If your primary close contact connection turns out not to have been infectious you will be released from that investigation and you are free to go," he said.
One of the positive cases recently moved to a holiday rental at Leongatha in the state's east, widening the area of close contacts.
Health Minister Martin Foley said that was the primary line of investigation for the outbreak.
No link has been found between the eight cases and any other known infections and genomic testing is underway to confirm if the traveller is the root of the outbreak.
Mr Weimar said 170 primary contacts of those eight cases are the major concern, and hundreds of secondary contacts are also being asked to get tested and self-isolate for 14 days.
"If your primary close contact connection turns out not to have been infectious you will be released from that investigation and you are free to go," he said.
One of the positive cases recently moved to a holiday rental at Leongatha in the state's east, widening the area of close contacts.
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