Covid 19 coronavirus: man escapes from Rotorua quarantine hotel

Security has been tightened at a managed isolation hotel in Rotorua after a man escaped through a fenced-in area.

The man was missing for half an hour at the Sudima Rotorua hotel last night.

He was reported missing at 11pm yesterday, prompting a search by New Zealand Defense Force personnel.

Police are now investigating the incident and reviewing CCTV security footage to establish exactly where the man went during that time.

“However, there are indications that it did not move beyond the immediate area,” Chief of Managed Isolation and Quarantine Air Commodore Darryn Webb said today.

It appears that the man escaped through a fenced area.

“There is no information to suggest that the man came into contact with another person while he was off the premises,” authorities said.

The man involved was taken to the hospital for evaluation, due to concerns for his well-being.

Webb said the man posed a low risk to public health.

He had tested negative on day 3 after arriving from Brisbane on September 8.

He remained symptom-free and was now on his ninth day of isolation, Webb said.

“I would like to reassure people, especially those in Rotorua who have concerns, that the health risk as a result of this incident has been assessed as low.”

Security has now been “tightened,” he said, at the site as a result of last night’s incident.

Isolation slips away

July 4th

Suzanne Marie Derrett, 43, allegedly climbed two hurdles at the Pullman hotel in Auckland’s financial district and left on foot. Authorities located her almost two hours later, two blocks away on Anzac Avenue.

July 07
A 32-year-old man in managed isolation at Auckland’s Stamford Plaza slipped through a gap in the fence around the smoking area.
She took a 70-minute excursion, which included shopping at a downtown Countdown supermarket, where she took selfies in the aisles. She returned to the hotel and then tested positive for Covid-19 the next day.

July 9th
Queenstown man Martin James McVicar, 52, ran away from the Distinction Hotel in Hamilton. McVicar allegedly cut the fence ties and walked 10 minutes to buy beer and wine.
He was incarcerated in Spring Hill Prison and charged with failing to comply with Covid-19 public health laws. He was also charged with intentional damage to a television.
at the hotel.

July 24
Five people escaped from the Distinction Hotel in Hamilton. A 37-year-old woman and three young men were found and detained around 8pm that night, and the fifth, a 17-year-old boy, was arrested in Auckland at 4:30 am the following day.