A pop-up testing site in Greenhithe to test patrons of The Malt. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
A pop-up testing site in Greenhithe to test patrons of The Malt. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
Health chief Ashley Bloomfield is warning the summer holidays could be at risk if Kiwis are not diligent with Covid-19 precautions.
The director general of health says New Zealanders should act like we're in a "level one plus" and is "strongly urging" masks on public transport and flights.
Bloomfield said face coverings and more stringent use of the Covid Tracer app could help avoid a shift in alert levels.
Health Minister Chris Hipkins has requested advice from the ministry on the pros and cons of making face masks mandatory where social distancing isn't possible.
Yesterday there were no new community cases with two reported in managed isolation - neither was connected to the foreign fishing crew in a Christchurch border hotel.
Bloomfield said the cluster was small and well-contained and there was nothing yet to suggest a shift in alert levels was needed.
That would only happen if there was a surge in new cases, especially if they couldn't immediately be traced to an already confirmed case.
But New Zealanders could take precautions to help ensure a move to alert level 2 didn't happen and instead enjoy their long Labour weekends, Bloomfield said.
The measures include using the Covid Tracer app, staying home if sick and getting a test, monitoring their health and practicising good hand hygiene and cough ettiquite.
Director general of health Ashley Bloomfield says Kiwis should act like we're in a 'level 1 plus'. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Bloomfield has also upped his advice on wearing masks on public transport and planes.
"If we do these other things over this long weekend, that is how we will avoid going into alert level 2 or up further alert levels.
"I think this is a good opportunity for us to reflect on the fact we would all like a good summer holiday over Christmas and New Year and if we can embed these behaviours we are much more likely to be able to do that."
Bloomfield said people shouldn't feel embarrased about wearing a mask -
he wears one himself.
"We've all got masks ... dust them back off and when you travel over the next few days."
Hipkins also encourages people to use face coverings in public when physical distancing is not possible and has asked for further advice as a precaution.
Daily Covid Tracer scans have dropped to about 500,000 - down from the several million daily scans during the peak of the August Auckland cluster.
Bloomfield said it was still mandatory for businesses to display codes and his ministry is looking into whether customers should also be made to sign in.
"Please get into the habit. It's a small, small thing you can do that can have a huge benefit."
Patrons of The Malt on Friday are being asked to isolate then get a test. Photo / NZH
Anyone who feels ill should avoid going away this weekend and instead stay home and get a test,
Bloomfield said.
Patrons of The Malt pub on Auckland's North Shore on Friday night, which was visited by a man who later tested positive for Covid-19, are still being asked to
get tested and remain in self-isolation until their result is returned.
The Health Ministry has established a means of expediting test results to try to get them back
Bloomfield said the man was not likely to have been infectious when he was at the pub between 7.30pm and 10.30pm as he had only been exposed to the virus that morning.
The push for patrons to get tested caused a rush on testing sites. Auckland Regional Public Health set up two additional testing centres, including one in Greenhithe where the pub is.
The bakery next door yesterday told its customers it would revert to alert level 3 settings to avoid face-to-face interactions as a precaution and the local barber reported a rush on bookings.
Health officials are investigating whether the man who visited The Malt was infected while in the same office as the first case in the cluster, a marine electronics engineer, who tested positive for the disease on Saturday.
It's believed the engineer caught the virus while working on a ship, the Sofrana Surville, in Auckland on October 12.
A third person who also visited the ship and later tested positive also could have infected the casual contact.
Australian health authorities yesterday confirmed of the 19 crew on the Sofrana, three have tested positive and the Health Ministry said this supported the hypothesis the port engineer caught the virus on the ship. Genome testing will confirm this.
Meanwhile,
Surf Life Saving NZ is considering widening flagged swimming areas or setting up a second set to allow beachgoers to stay distanced.
Roaming and observational patrols could also be stepped up this summer in an effort to keep those swimming in other parts of the beach safer.
