Covid-19 Delta outbreak: Victoria's cases explode to record high

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. Photo / Getty Images

Victoria has recorded 2297 new locally acquired cases and 11 more deaths on Thursday.

The state's health department confirmed the new figures about 9am, which was a new national record and the first time an Australian state has broken 2000 daily cases.

The previous Australian record was when 1946 Victorians tested positive for coronavirus on October 8.

Victoria's seven-day cases average had been falling earlier this week but has now ballooned to 1806, data analyst website CovidBase AU reports.

Victoria's Reff number – how many other people on average a single Covid-carrying person will infect – is still trending down at 1.02, its lowest point of the outbreak.

It comes as the portion of the population fully vaccinated against the virus climbed to 61.5 per cent overnight.

The new deaths take the number of lives lost during Victoria's outbreak to 125 and the toll of the pandemic in Victoria to 945.

At least 705 Covid-positive patients are in hospital in Victoria, with 146 of those in intensive care, including 92 cases on a ventilator.

It comes as Victoria gallops towards its 70 per cent reopening target several days earlier than expected.

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The Victorian government initially forecast an end to lockdown for Melbourne on October 26, once 70 per cent of the population aged 16 and older were fully vaccinated, but new data from Covid Live suggests the target could be met by October 22.

Chief health officer Brett Sutton this week said the government would likely end lockdown sooner if targets were met early.

"There's some flexibility depending on how quickly we get at or around that 70 per cent double-dose mark," Professor Sutton said.

"If we move there faster, there's obviously consideration of having public health directions kick in a little bit earlier, potentially."

But Health Minister Martin Foley dodged committing to a date to reopen the state on Wednesday.

"Indicative dates were released in the (road map) and Victoria is racing along. As the chief health officer has indicated, when the data is in a position to be interpreted, he is in a position to look at it," he said.

It comes as the state government launched pop-up vaccination clinics at local cafes, gyms, clubs and shopping strips across the suburbs from Wednesday in the rush to get the population protected.

There are 20,505 active coronavirus cases in Victoria.