'This is an ultramarathon': Premier warns against complacency as numbers decline

Though, Premier Daniel Andrews warned this was an "ultramarathon" and Victorians should not take the lower numbers as a reason to stop following restrictions.

There were 179 new cases reported today - the first time fewer than 200 cases had been confirmed in say since July 13.

"We are all pleased to see a 1 in front of those numbers, a little quicker than we supposed. What that shows, the vast majority of Victorians are doing a mighty job in limiting the spread of this virus," Mr Andrews said.

"Even with the mildest symptoms, please come forward and get tested.

"In doing so, you would have made a massive contribution in getting to the other side of this second wave."

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Fifteen of today's new cases are in regional Victoria.

There are now 269 active cases in regional Victoria, which are largely linked with outbreaks in Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo.

There are 4421 active cases statewide, of which 3808 are "mystery cases" with an unknown source.

Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said the increase in cases in regional Victoria today was not of concern.

"Regional Victoria has been trending down very well, maybe faster than metro Melbourne in terms of the proportion of coming down each day," he said.

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Professor Sutton said the drop in active cases in metropolitan Melbourne had flow-on effects.

"As community numbers come down then the opportunity for outbreaks and clusters within those settings reduce and of course we're protecting our rural and regional brothers and sisters," he said.

There are 626 Victorians in hospital with the virus. 40 people are receiving intensive care and there are 25 people on ventilators.

There are 1732 active cases in aged care settings and 668 active cases are healthcare workers.

Yesterday's local DHHS had quite an impact on the number of active coronavirus cases in the Wimmera.

There are now only two active COVID-19 cases in Horsham, down from three on Wednesday This would suggest that one person has recovered, but that cannot be fully verified.

However, one total case was added to Horsham's tally. There have now been 12 cases - including recovered - in the municipality.

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Meanwhile, there are no longer any active COVID-19 cases in the West Wimmera.

On Wednesday, there were two reported active cases and three total cases in the shire.

Yesterday's figures showed there has only ever been one case in the shire. Two cases have been reclassified.

One active case remains in Ararat.

There are no active cases in the Northern Grampians, Hindmarsh or Yarriambiack shires.

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