Victoria’s hard border with New South Wales (NSW) will start from 11.59 p.m. on Friday after eight locally acquired cases were recorded in less than 24 hours. Premier Daniel Andrews said Victoria is equipped to handle new coronavirus clusters. These cases, which first emerged on Wednesday night, ended a 60-day streak without infections for Victoria. All are directly or indirectly linked to the Smile Buffalo Thai restaurant in Black Rock on Dec. 21, which was attended by a NSW returned traveller. That traveller returned before border permits were in place and was tested on Thursday. It was also revealed on Friday that wastewater samples taken from Lakes Entrance on Dec. 29 recorded traces of the virus, prompting calls or anyone in that area with symptoms to get tested. The unexpected result means there will be an increase in samples taken from the Lakes Entrance area. “We always knew there would be …