Covid 19 coronavirus: Family member of two other community cases tests positive - Ashley Bloomfield and Chris Hipkins

A family member of two of last week's community Covid cases has tested positive for coronavirus.

Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says the person was tested on the 27th of January, and on the 1st and 2nd of Feb. The person tested positive for Covid-19 on the 2nd of Feb.

The new case is the mother and wife of the two community cases who tested positive last Wednesday.

The public health risk, according to Hipkins, is low as the person had already been isolating - as they were a close contact of one of the already announced Auckland cases

The woman is being moved to the Auckland quarantine facility. She previously had been isolating at home. Her close contacts are now also being tested.

Hipkins said there is "rigorous" testing the Government does to ensure the virus does not transmit.

Director general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield and Health Minister Chris Hipkins arriving for their Covid-19 response update at the Beehive. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield is not expecting more cases as a result of this, as the woman was already isolating.

Bloomfield said there are 7 new cases - 6 in managed isolation.

The other case is the person linked to the community cases.

Bloomfield said this case being picked up was a good example of New Zealand's response working.

He said three of the border cases revealed today were caught on the Day 0 testing.

He said the day 0 people might have been symptomatic on arrival and those people were sent straight to Jet Park.

On the Pullman report, Hipkins said he has not seen it yet.

The last of the guests are due to leave on Saturday - that's when the "deep clean" starts.

"The Pullman will not be occupied after Saturday," Hipkins said.

It will only be used after Hipkins is confident the risk is low enough.

New Zealand officials gave the green light to a Covid jab yesterday. Photo / AP

Hipkins said New Zealand has "deliberately overordered" Covid-19 vaccines so if there is too much, it can be sent back.

New Zealand will have a "very active role" in distributing vaccines to the Pacific, Hipkins said.

He said as the science tells the Government more about the vaccine programme, it will "fine tune" the programme and its rollout.

Hipkins said the Government will have 226,000 vaccines on NZ shores by the end of the first quarter.

Asked if athletes going to get jabs before everyone else, ahead of the Olympics, Hipkins said it's quite possible that they would be caught in the nation-wide vaccine rollout anyway.

If not, he said that NZ Olympians might be pushed ahead in the queue.

On the death in MIQ, Hipkins confirmed it was non-Covid but didn't know what the cause of death was.

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This morning, it was confirmed that a person had died at the Crowne Plaza managed isolation facility at roughly 7.30 last night.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Health confirmed the death was not Covid-19.

The person is understood to have arrived in New Zealand from Vanuatu.

"Our thoughts are with the deceased's family and friends at this difficult time," the spokesperson said.

This is the second death in MIQ in the space of two months.

In late December, Reverend Samata Iusitini Leiloa died at the Millennium Hotel in downtown Auckland.

Hipkins is also likely to touch on the investigation into how Covid-19 was spread in the Pullman.

Bloomfield told Newstalk ZB this morning that airborne transmission seemed the most likely way Covid-19 had spread among returnees in the MIQ facility.

He said it was possible when the infected person went out of their room, the virus could have been swept out into the corridor.

Someone in the same area a short time later could have inhaled the same air and become infected, he said.

"Airborne transmission is the most likely route so that's as far as we've got so far."

Bloomfield will likely elaborate on the investigation this afternoon.