Health authorities in the region fear there could be undetected cases of COVID-19 in the community, as the Murrumbidgee Local Health District recorded 46 new COVID-19 cases.
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This followed the announcement at the weekend that a resident of the Wagga LGA had tested positive for COVID-19.
MHLD chief executive Jill Ludford said the origins of the case in Wagga are still being traced, but at this stage, it is believed to be linked to the outbreak in Albury and Wodonga.
She said this case, combined with recent sewage detections and exposure sites, mean there could be community transmission.
"An undetected community transmission is the very thing that we are concerned about," she said.
"This is a very, very important time ... we have stopped talking about social distancing and washing your hands, but actually those are the two most critical things that you can do to help keep yourself safe during a time like this."
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Of the 46 cases recorded in the MLHD to 8pm on Sunday, 41 have listed addresses in the Albury local government area and the Coolamon, Murrumbidgee, Greater Hume, Federation and Berrigan LGAs have one each.
On Sunday, it was announced that a resident of the Coolamon local government area was among the new cases.
However, the MLHD has confirmed that while that case and the second one revealed on Monday both have listed addresses in Coolamon Shire, they are not currently living in the district.
"The two cases recorded for the Coolamon LGA are currently in isolation outside the MLHD and have not been in the community during their infectious period," a statement from the MLHD said.
There have been no further detections of traces of COVID-19 in sewage in the past 24 hours, but fragments were recently detected in tests at the Kooringal plant and in Jerilderie.
NSW Health senior environmental health officer Tony Burns said almost every major town in the MLHD is conducting a minimum of one weekly sewage surveillance test.
"We have seen a number of sewage detections across the district," he said.
"I think that goes to what Jill [Ludford] has mentioned about the number of cases that have started to appear. We are picking that up very early in the sewage system.
"We work with local councils to ensure they increase additional testing so we can get a good clear picture as to what might be happening in an LGA."
Mr Burns said the sewage surveillance program is working well, and when they have a notification, the MLHD works to increase testing in the area.
The MLHD has specifically referenced the Kooringal plant as having SARS-CoV-2 detected at the network site, while NSW Health also has it showing up at the Narrung Street plant.
Mr Burns said both plants are now being tested twice weekly due to the earlier detections, but he said the fragments could be from earlier detected patients, who have since recovered but are still shedding the virus.
"If you are unwell, always come forward for testing," he said.
"This surveillance program is an early detection for us to potentially pick up where we don't have cases confirmed, but we may have the virus being shed and ending up in the system."
Meanwhile, about 85 per cent of the state's adult population is double vaccinated, with first doses at 93 per cent.
Ms Ludford urges those who are not booked in to ensure they do so as soon as possible as vaccination is proven to prevent a severe case of COVID-19 and lower the risk of transmission.
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