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Emergency services volunteers have been forced to perform an "unacceptable" number of flood rescues across NSW as rising waters drive residents from their homes in the Upper Hunter.

Dams and rivers are overflowing across the state after a month of heavy rainfall.

State Emergency Services volunteers were called upon to rescue 12 people from floodwaters overnight, with 120 rescues performed since the heavy rain set in.

Premier Dominic Perrottet said that number was too high.

Driving through flood waters "puts the lives of those flood rescue teams at unnecessary risk, it is also putting your own life at risk", Emergency Services Minister David Elliott added.

The SES received 300 requests for assistance in the 24 hours to Sunday morning, Commissioner Carlene York said.

She said the weather had been a "significant event" across the state.

"All our dams are full and some are on white alert, which means they're going up to capacity," she said.

"The rivers are full and the ground is quite saturated."

In the central west, the Namoi and Lachlan rivers have posed the biggest risk.

On the Namoi, Gunnedah is experiencing major flooding as levels peak. There's also major flooding at Narrabri and Wee Waa, which will be cut off for about a week.

The Lachlan River's main flood peak is approaching Forbes, where levels are set to peak on Monday afternoon. Jemalong is also seeing major flooding.

A caravan park at Wagga has had to be cleared as well, with residents moved to higher ground.

In the Upper Hunter, residents around Singleton were ordered to evacuate on Saturday evening.

While the rain has eased, another front is threatening to bring further downpours later this week.

Ms York said some of the flood rescues were people driving into floodwaters, but others were people who'd become isolated between floodwaters.

"If you're in an area of high risk of flooding, please just do essential travel and don't go out unless you really have to," she said.

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The NSW premier has warned the COVID-19 pandemic is not over, as urgent genomic sequencing is undertaken to establish whether the Omicron strain has already reached Sydney.

Two people who arrived from Africa overnight tested positive to the virus on arrival, with authorities expected to know by Sunday evening whether they have the Omicron B.1.1.529 variant of concern.

Some 29 people who'd been in one of the nine southern African countries subject to elevated restrictions touched down in Sydney across two flights on Saturday evening.

They've all been sent to hotel quarantine.

The two positive cases were on the same Qatar Airways flight from Doha that flew in at 7pm.

All passengers on the flight are now classified as close contacts and must isolate for 14 days, even if they haven't been in southern Africa.

Premier Dominic Perrottet says it's a reminder that the pandemic is not over, and described his approach as precautionary.

However, he cautioned that it must be expected that the variant will spread throughout the world.

"We need to learn to live alongside the virus. We need to learn to live alongside the variants of the virus," he said.

Although he's ordered all international arrivals to quarantine at home for 72 hours, Mr Perrottet insisted the NSW international and state borders would remain open.

"We can't be a hermit kingdom on the other side of the world," he said.

"There's only so much governments can do. The best thing we can do as a people is to get vaccinated, get a booster shot, and that will keep you and your family safe."

The three-day quarantine order is on top of a federal government requirement for travellers to enter quarantine for two weeks if they've been in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia, Eswatini, Malawi or the Seychelles within the past 14 days.

There are no plans to adjust the state's reopening roadmap, Mr Perrottet said, so restrictions will still ease for the unvaccinated on December 15.

The COVID and economic recovery committee, formerly known as crisis cabinet, will meet on Sunday afternoon to discuss the threat.

Health Minister Brad Hazzard said not much is known about the new strain, though it may be more transmissible than Delta.

In particular, the effectiveness of current vaccines against Omicron is still being established, he said.

Mr Hazzard said it only took the Delta variant three weeks to reach 53 nations.

"We have to expect that Omicron may well ... already be here," he said.

Anyone already in NSW who has been in the nine southern African countries within the previous 14 days must immediately be tested, isolate for 14 days and contact NSW Health.

Meanwhile, the state added 185 new infections to its caseload on Sunday.

For the fourth day in a row, no new deaths were reported.

NSW hospitals continue to treat 165 patients, nine fewer than the previous day. Twenty-four are in intensive care units, 21 of whom are unvaccinated, and nine are ventilated.

Testers processed more than 54,000 results in the 24 hours to 8pm on Saturday.

NSW is 94.5 per cent single-dosed for everyone 16 and over, while 92.4 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Of 12- to 15-year-olds, 81.3 per cent have received one jab and 76.5 per cent both.

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The Morrison government will introduce legislation this week to crack down on abuse and bullying on social media platforms.

Under the laws, social media platforms will be forced to expose the identity of individuals who post defamatory or damaging material anonymously.

"The online world provides many great opportunities but it comes with some real risks and we must address these, or it will continue to have a very harmful and corrosive impact on our society, on our community," Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters in Canberra on Sunday.

The government is seeking a complaints mechanism where if somebody thinks that they are being defamed, bullied or attacked on social media that they will have an opportunity to require the platform to take it down.

If the platform fails to comply, there will be a court process that would allow that person to require the platform to provide details of the identity of the abusive or defaming identity.

"The online world should not be a wild west where bots and bigots and trolls and others can (be) anonymously going around and can harm people and hurt people, harass them and bully them and sledge them," Mr Morrison said.

He said online companies must have proper processes to enable the removal of this content.

"There needs to be an easy and quick and fast way for people to raise these issues with these platforms and get it taken down," he said.

"They have that responsibility. They have created this world."

Mr Morrison said the government will be looking for test cases to reinforce these new laws, and will back people who have been wronged if they are someone of little means.

"We will back them in the courts and we will take them on. We will take them on in the parliament, and we will take them on in the courts because I want to ensure our kids are safe," the prime minister said.

Liberal minister Anne Ruston said it is "absolutely unacceptable" if a platform thinks it can shirk its responsibility.

"I would really like to see any of these platforms stand up and say that they think it's acceptable that they hide behind the anonymity of bots and bullies and bigots online," Senator Ruston told ABC's Insiders program.

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese agreed with the sentiment of the government's announcement but said it must be delivered on.

"The government needs to explain how it can deal with the fact that domestic controls have limitations for what is a global industry," he told reporters in Melbourne.

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Scientists are working quickly to establish whether the "concerning" new Omicron variant of COVID-19 is already in Sydney after two arrivals from southern Africa tested positive to the virus.

Urgent genomic sequencing was under way, NSW Health confirmed early on Sunday.

Fourteen passengers who'd been in the nine southern African countries subject to elevated restrictions arrived on a flight from Doha to Sydney on Saturday evening.

Two of them tested positive on arrival.

Scientists are looking into whether they've been infected by the new Omicron B.1.1.529 variant of concern.

All 14 travellers were transferred to special health accommodation for 14 days of quarantine, under new federal government rules.

Passengers who hadn't been in southern Africa may be considered close contacts and forced to isolate for 14 days.

Under rules announced by federal Health Minister Greg Hunt on Saturday to address the risk posed by Omicron, all travellers who have recently been in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia, Eswatini, Malawi and the Seychelles must quarantine for two weeks.

NSW has imposed extra measures, with all overseas arrivals ordered to quarantine at home for 72 hours.

Flight crews who have been overseas must isolate for two weeks.

Anyone already in NSW who has been in the nine southern African countries within the previous 14 days must immediately be tested, isolate for 14 days and contact NSW Health.

Premier Dominic Perrottet said precautionary steps were needed to protect against the Omicron variant while experts investigate the risk.

Omicron looked as if it could be even more transmissible than the Delta variant, Health Minister Brad Hazzard said on Saturday.

He said Omicron was concerning for public health officials, though experts were still trying to understand it.

Mr Perrottet and Mr Hazzard will address the media on Sunday about the new variant.

Meanwhile, the state added 185 new infections to its caseload on Sunday, and no further deaths.

NSW's hospitals continue to treat 165 patients, 24 of them in intensive care units.

Testers processed more than 54,000 results in the 24 hours to 8pm on Saturday.

NSW is 94.5 per cent single-dosed for everyone 16 and over, while 92.4 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Of 12- to 15-year-olds, 81.3 per cent have received one jab and 76.5 per cent both.

Should NSW reach its goal of 95 per cent full coverage by December 15 an early easing of restrictions will trigger, according to the state's roadmap out of lockdown.

© AAP 2021