Covid 19 coronavirus: Two confirmed cases in South Taranaki

The Taranaki region now has seven confirmed cases and one probable.

South Taranaki has two new confirmed cases of Covid-19.

The Taranaki District Health Board confirmed the cases on Friday afternoon.

It takes the total to seven confirmed cases and one probable for the region.

Taranaki's medical officer of health, Dr Jonathan Jarman, said a 17-year-old female and a 51-year-old male are the latest people to test positive for the virus in the last 24 hours.

The 17-year-old has recently returned from overseas travel and the 51-year-old is a close contact who we believe contracted the virus from the 17-year-old.

Both are in self isolation.

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"These are unprecedented times for New Zealand and even though we don't have a pandemic in our country, there are now sporadic cases in many parts of New Zealand, including North and South Taranaki."

All cases in the Taranaki region are travel related or belong to families of people who have recently returned from overseas travel.

Jarman said he expects cases to increase over the next ten days.

"We need to get on top of this by all doing our bit and breaking the chain of transmission and slowing the spread of COVID-19. This is a really important time for everyone in Taranaki and the nation as a whole to ensure we're abiding with the Government guidelines and staying home to keep ourselves and whānau safe."

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website