The Melbourne Marine Safety Police arrived in Portland on Tuesday before docking in Port Fairy on Saturday.

Water police squad Senior Sergeant Paul Gatty said members were assisting the Victoria Police dog squad, fisheries and local members to enforce social distancing and safety rules.

"It's pretty weather dependent but wherever the fish are, we are too," he said.

"We're supporting local members by conducting checks on people, making sure they're adhering to the restrictions and returning home to their own residence at night.

"Fisheries are also ensuring that people are safety compliant and are following the catch limit."

Senior Sergeant Gatty said he was so far pleased with the community's behaviour.

"So far, so good," he said.

"A lot of these boat operators are highly experienced, they're going off shore and they're fully licensed - it's not a spontaneous fishing trip."

Port Fairy police Sergeant David Walkley is the south-west supervisor for Operation Sentinel - a police operation focusing on enforcing containment measures and restrictions introduced by the government due to the coronavirus pandemic.

He said since restrictions were eased on Wednesday there were more people on the roads and throughout the coastal town.

"There is certainly more people out and about, both locals and day-trippers," he said.

"We've had no reports overnight of people flouting the rules. As part of Operation Sentinel we've got two units covering the south-west region, making sure people are adhering to the guidelines and educating them where necessary."

Sergeant Walkley said it was good to see more people returning to hot spots such as parks, beaches and rivers, so long as they remained with 1.5 metres from each other.

"There's more people in the streets and more people on the water," he said.

"With restrictions in place we had a reduced volume of vehicles on the road but this weekend there's definitely been more motorists making day trips, with one in five vehicles towing boats in this area."

Sergeant Walkely said he observed about 50 boats at the Port of Port Fairy on Friday, and about half of that by midday on Saturday.

"When there's fish, there's people," he said.

Leading Senior Constable Phil Collishaw, of the Victoria Police dog squad, was patrolling the port with four-year-old Labrador Gecko.

"He's been operational for about two years," he said in reference to the pooch.

"We are supporting local and water police by providing drug detection in the area."

The Marine Safety Police will be patrolling the area before they head back to Melbourne on Tuesday.

READ more: South-west police said they were so far pleased with behaviour following new social distancing guidelines

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