New Zealand's Covid-19 related death toll has doubled from two to four after two men in their 70s and 80s passed away.
The man in his 80s, who passed away at Wellington Public Hospital yesterday, first became unwell on March 26 and was admitted to hospital two days later.
The man's infection was linked to an existing cluster which Director of Public Health Dr Caroline McElnay said she wouldn't identify for privacy reasons at Parliament today.
The second was a man in his 70s who died in Burwood Hospital, Christchurch, after being among the group transferred from the Rosewood Rest Home.
He was New Zealand's second death related to the Christchurch rest home after a 90-year-old woman with underlying health conditions passed away in Burwood Hospital, confirmed yesterday.
They were two of 20 residents hospitalised from the rest home after someone tested positive at the facility. McElnay said the way in which Covid-19 entered the facility was still under investigation.
The other death was West Coast woman Anne Guenole, 73, who passed away in hospital on March 29, two days after testing positive for Covid-19.
McElnay also announced there had been a further 29 positive Covid-19 cases as at 9am today (20 confirmed, 9 probable), taking the national tally to 1312 including 422 recovered cases.
One of New Zealand's new cases was from Northland, a woman in her 30s with no link to international travel.
• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website
The new case took Northland's positive case tally to 25, 23 confirmed and two probable.
There were currently no cases in Northland hospitals with 19 self-isolating at home and six had recovered. Of the cases, six were Māori and 18 non-Māori (one unknown).
Nationally, there were 15 people in hospital with five in intensive care. One of the five was in a critical condition in Dunedin Hospital.
McElnay said the Ministry of Health was still seeing a strong but decreasing link to overseas travel in its cases. Eleven per cent of cases were still under investigation.
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