Coronavirus Covid-19: Northland Community Case: The Places the Woman Visited

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* The full list of locations visited by positive case (see below) and here

New Zealand faces anxious wait as health officials scramble to determine if Covid-19 is spreading again in the community after a Northland woman tested positive for the virus after leaving controlled isolation.

The 56-year-old, who lives south of Whangārei, was discharged from MIQ in Auckland on January 13, developed mild symptoms on January 15 and was tested on January 22 after her condition worsened.

Visited 28 locations (including one location twice) while traveling through South Northland.

The list includes supermarkets, clothing and electronics stores, cafes, restaurants, a gallery, plant center, museum, pharmacy, vehicle testing station, and tavern. Includes locations in Whangārei, Ruakaka, Parua Bay, Mangawhai Heads, and Helensville. The full list is posted below.

Covers a period from January 14, the day after you left MIQ, to January 22, the day you were tested.

The Health Ministry said that anyone who visited the sights during relevant times is considered to have a low risk of exposure, but should isolate themselves and call Healthline to find out when and where to get tested.

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It is the first community case reported in New Zealand since November and has prompted a rush to identify how the woman was infected and whether the virus has spread further.

She is now isolated at home with her husband, who has also been examined and is awaiting the results.

Covid-19 Minister Chris Hipkins said it was still too early to say whether restrictions or changes to the alert level would be needed, or how the woman contracted the virus.

“We don’t have the relevant information we need to make more decisions on this. As soon as we do, we will keep people informed.”

He said anyone with symptoms should get tested, anywhere in New Zealand.

Chief Health Officer Dr Ashley Bloomfield said the woman had only four close contacts, who were now in isolation for 14 days.

However, it had been to nearly 30 different locations while potentially infectious, including Mangawhai, Dargaville, and even Helensville, as well as Whangārei.

Anyone who has been in the same business at the relevant times was asked to isolate themselves, call Healthline, and get tested for Covid-19.

The low number of close contacts has Covid-19 experts optimistic that a lockdown will be avoided, but they warn that test results for those contacts could be critical.

Professor Shaun Hendy, a Covid-19 modeler, said that while the new case was concerning, there were only four close contacts.

“Going forward, it will be important to determine whether the person acquired the case in managed isolation and quarantine, as this could mean that there are other returnees who may have been exposed and officials will want to toughen procedures that could have led to exposure. “

The names of the businesses the woman visited went to the Health Ministry’s website, but only after the businesses themselves were informed of the contact – a delay that has drawn criticism as many people were returning from vacation in the past week.

The list was posted around 9 p.m. last night.

National health spokesperson and Whangarei-based roster deputy Shane Reti said there was a sense of disbelief among the community and he was very disappointed that nearly 30 sites weren’t immediately revealed.

“On matters of urgency like this and on a weekend, so there may not be people until Monday during their working hours, I think urgency trumps some of the other concerns.”

Mangawhai is a popular vacation spot for Auckland residents and many may have left the area to return to work in the past week.

Additional test stations will be installed in Northland, especially around Mangawhai.

The woman had used the Covid tracking app, so other people who had scanned or had Bluetooth turned on would be alerted.

The woman’s case also raised concerns about possible transmission at MIQ facilities.

He had stayed at the Pullman Hotel in Auckland during his period of isolation until January 13, and the Covid-19 team was scanning CCTV footage to check for possible cases of infection transmission.

Genomic sequencing was also underway to see if it was the same strain as other Pullman cases.

Bloomfield said that until it became known, they were acting under the assumption that it was one of the rapidly expanding variants in the UK or South Africa. About a dozen other people at the Pullman in Auckland had tested positive for Covid-19 during the woman’s stay, and several had those variants.

Covid-19 modeler Professor Michael Plank said the case was different from the August Auckland group, given that authorities were dealing with a single case with a probable link to the border, rather than several without connection.

“But it’s a bit of a waiting game to get the close contact test results, that’s the key at this stage, and once we get the test results, we’ll know if it’s spread further.”

The woman left the Pullman on January 13 and told health officials that she had very mild symptoms, such as muscle aches, on January 15, but that she did not associate them with Covid-19 until they worsened during the week. He was tested on January 22 and the positive result came in on Saturday night.

The woman had returned from a work trip for about four months in Spain and visited her family in the Netherlands on the way back. He returned via London, where he stayed at an airport hotel and passed through Singapore.

The woman was in isolation at home with her husband while he recovered, rather than moving to the quarantine facility at Jet Park with other Covid-19 cases.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Health said the Northland District Board of Health Medical Health Officer had decided that it was appropriate in his case.

“The situation will be closely monitored to ensure that there is no risk to public health.”

Hipkins said all Pullman personnel who had not had a test in recent days were being tested. Another 600 people who had stayed at the Pullman during the same period were also asked to isolate themselves and take tests.

The full list of locations is:

• FreshChoice Ruakaka – January 14 – 15: 00-16: 33
• Aesthetic clothing store – January 15 – 8.48 am-9.53 am
• Noel Leeming Whangarei – January 15 – 9.02 am-10.12 am
• Bendon Whangarei – January 15 – 9:03 am-10:30 am
• The Warehouse Whangarei – January 15 – 9.28 am-10.58 am
• Flaming Fires – January 15 – 10.24 am-11.34 am
• Whangarei and Kamo Test Stations: January 15, 10.40-11.45.
• Bed Bath and Beyond Whangarei: January 15 from 10.54 am to 12.04 pm
• Fat Camel Cafe: January 15 from 11.34 to 13.34
• Parua Bay Tavern – January 15 – 15: 20-17: 20
• Bream Bay Butchers Ruakaka – January 16 – 11.02 am-12.07 pm
• Ruakaka General Store: January 16 from 11:08 am to 12:10 pm
• FreshChoice Ruakaka: January 16 from 11.10 am to 12.15 pm
• Urban Remedy Cafe – January 17 – 8.17 am-9.47 am
• Joseph Taylor Homewares – January 17 – 2.08 pm-3.18 pm
• Eutopia Cafe: January 18 from 8.55 am to 10.55 am
• Maungaturoto Thrift Store – January 18 – 10.06am-11.36am
• Four Square Square – January 18 – 10.44 am-11.49 am
• White Rock Gallery – January 18 – 11:15 am-12:24 pm
• Kauri Museum – January 18 – 11.21 a. M. A 3.21 p. M.
• Gumdiggers Cafe Matakohe – Jan 18 – 12:39 pm M. – 2:39 p. M.
• The Dune Restaurant & Bar – January 18, from 4:47 to 7:17
• Center of Plants and Sculpture Gardens of the Kaipara Coast: January 19 from 11.04 am to 1.04 pm
• The Ville Turkish Cafe Helensville – January 19 – 13: 08-14: 00
• Countdown Helensville – January 19 – 1.46 pm-3.01 pm
• Super Liquor Helensville – January 19 – 2.03 pm-3.08 pm
• South Head General Store: January 19 from 2.44 pm to 3.49 pm
• Macnut Cafe Helensville: January 21, 10.20 am. M. A 11.50 a. M.
• Orrs Unichem Pharmacy Ruakaka – January 22 – 11.21 am-12.26 pm