Covid 19 Delta outbreak: Craig Cooper - virus scare prompts mild state of panic in Hawke's Bay

A Waikato traveller to Napier has since tested positive for Covid-19. Photo / NZME

On the eve of a four-day weekend, there we were, relaxed and unsuspecting, looking forward to a few days off.

And then Ashley Bloomfield calmly sent Hawke's Bay into a mild state of panic with the news that a traveller to the region has tested positive for Covid, after leaving town.

The person, from Waikato, was potentially infectious in Napier.

The person was asymptomatic - but could still have potentially transmitted Covid-19 while in the Bay.

Two close contacts with the Waikato person who were in Napier have returned negative tests, including a Wairoa man.

The Waikato case is now isolating at home. The Wairoa man is fine.

And there were no cases reported in Hawke's Bay - good news.

There was more good news.

Vaccination remains the best defence against Covid-19. Photo / NZME

Wairoa District Council mayor Craig Little knows the Wairoa close contact and says he was double vaxed and did everything right.

Little made a good point - "The fact he tested negative should be a motivation for all the people out there who are still thinking about not getting the vaccination."

Here's another point - regional New Zealand is slowly getting its act together.

A Wellington resident recently spent some time in the South Island and came away surprised at how relaxed the town was when it came to face masks and the like.

I made the same observation earlier this year, travelling to Wellington and noticing how much more vigilant the capital was when it came to matters Covid.

Regional New Zealand was behind the eight ball.

But we're getting better.

And in terms of timing, the scare comes after Super Saturday. So the timing is good.

Just over 80 per cent of Hawke's Bay has now had at least one jab.

Nationally, we're aiming for 90 per cent - 95 per cent would be great because vaccination remains the best form of defence.

The higher the percentage, the less likely that the brief sense of panic that lit up social media on Thursday is justified.

It is still very fresh in our memory banks that a Covid case equals level 3 or 4 lockdown.

But as vaccination rates increase, the battle against Covid continues to evolve.

Level 3 and 4 will not look like they did in 2020, or earlier this year.

Cross your fingers, roll up your sleeves, keep calm and carry on wearing masks, contact tracing and putting one Covid-free foot in front of the other.