Director-General of the Ministry of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield and Chief Executive of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples Laulu Mac Leauanae take questions on Covid-19. Video / Ministry of Health
A person with Covid-19 visited the Les Mills gym in Takapuna and the Countdown supermarket and The Warehouse at Milford - all on Auckland's North Shore - before knowing they had tested positive.
Auckland Regional Public Health is warning anyone who visited the Les Mills gym in Takapuna on September 9 and 10 and attended certain Body Combat and Sprint classes is now being treated as a close contact.
The classes included the Wednesday September 9 5.30pm RPM Sprint class and 6.15pm Body Combat class, and the Thursday September 10 9.15am Body Combat class
A spokesperson said the person also visited The Warehouse and Countdown in Milford on Thursday September 10.
Meanwhile, Cabinet meets today to decide whether Auckland and New Zealand should stay at alert levels 2.5 and 2, respectively, after 11.59pm this Wednesday. Health experts believe it's still too early to lower the alert levels.
An ARPHS spokesperson said in a statement anyone who attended the same Les Mills Takapuna classes as the person with Covid-19 is considered to be a close contact, and at greater risk of becoming unwell.
"We are asking these people to stay at home and contact Healthline on 0800 358 5453 as soon as possible. Healthline will advise them on the steps they will need to take, including arranging testing."
Those who may have attended the gym around the same time as the case (between around 5.15pm and 7pm on September 9 and 9am and 10.15am on September 10), but who were not in the same classes, are considered casual contacts.
While casual contacts are considered at lower risk of becoming unwell, ARPHS is recommending that these people call Healthline and arrange to also have a one-off test.
Casual contacts should also remain vigilant for the signs and symptoms of Covid-19, but do not need to self-isolate unless they become unwell.
ARPHS said the risk to anyone who was at the other locations - the Countdown supermarket or the Warehouse - at the same time as the case is very low.
"The person was only in these stores for 15 minutes and did not have close contact with anyone else during the visits. While the person was infectious at the time, the risk to staff and other shoppers is considered low."
It comes as Auckland is on the eve of finding out whether the city will drop from alert level 2.5.
Auckland's Covid-19 cluster has now grown to become New Zealand's largest cluster, increasing the need for residents to keep a record of where they have been, and when.
To date, 176 cases have been reported, and the origin of the outbreak is still under investigation.
As of the start of September, more than two million people had downloaded the NZ Covid Tracer app, but the number of daily location scans showed it was still not capturing every movement.
The Government recently announced it would be releasing a paper booklet for location-logging, that those who did not want to use the app could carry with them.
"They allow you to keep a manual paper diary; we're aware that some of our senior citizens in particular prefer to keep a paper record of where they have been," Health Minister Chris Hipkins said at an earlier Covid-19 media briefing.
Hipkins urged New Zealanders to keep track of their movements. "If you're not using the app, then we ask you to keep track of your movements in some other way."
The Government reported two new cases of Covid-19 in New Zealand today, with one being an imported case in managed isolation, and another being a health worker at Jet Park Hotel.
Five household contacts connected to the health worker are in isolation at their home and are being tested today.
"This case is still being investigated to determine if the infection came from the community or from within the quarantine facility, though at this stage no obvious links to other cases in the community have been established," the Ministry of Health said.
The Ministry's "locations of interest"
• Countdown, Milford, Thursday September 10, 11.45am-12pm
• The Warehouse, Milford, Thursday September 10, 11am-11.15am
• Les Mills,Takapuna, Thursday September 10, 9.15am Body Combat class
• Les Mills, Takapuna, Wednesday September 9, 5.30pm RPM Sprint class and 6.15pm Body Combat class
• KAGE - Brickworks, New Lynn, Sunday September 6, 9.15am-11.15am
• Northern Express Bus, seven trips back and forth between Hibiscus/Albany and the CBD, three trips between CBD-Albany Albany-CBD, Friday September 4, 5.40am-1pm, 4pm-6.15pm
• Crave Café, Morningside, Friday September 4, 9.30am-3pm
• Countdown Lynnmall, New Lynn, Friday September 4, 8-8.30pm
• Northern Express Bus, seven trips back and forth between Hibiscus/Albany and the CBD, three trips between CBD-Albany Albany-CBD, Thursday September 3, 5.40am-1pm, 4pm-6.15pm
• Kreem Bake Cook, Henderson, Thursday September 3, 9.30am-1pm
• St Dominic's Girl's Catholic College, Henderson, Wednesday - Friday, September 2-4, 8.30am-3.30pm
• Bricklane Restaurant and Bar,New Lynn, Wednesday September 2,12pm-1.30pm
• Pak'nSave Ormiston, Flatbush, Friday August 28, 11-12pm
