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The new Covid-19 case in the community is a new “border raid” and is not linked to the Auckland August cluster or any previous case, says the director general of health.
In a rare Sunday press conference, Dr. Ashley Bloomfield announced that a man working on ships around New Zealand had received a positive result for Covid-19 on Friday.
However, he moved to allay public fears of another outbreak, saying the risk that the virus had spread in the community was “low.”
KEVIN STENT / Stuff
A sample is taken from a person at a coronavirus testing center in Wellington. (File photo)
Bloomfield, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Health Minister Chris Hipkins said Sunday that no change in restrictions was necessary at that time.
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In a second press conference at 1 pm Monday, Bloomfield said that the genome sequencing of the case had been completed.
“It fits the scenario that this case is a ‘border incursion’ case, rather than a community case of unknown origin,” he said.
Katarina Williams / Things
Dr. Ashley Bloomfield announces a new case of community transmission on Sunday.
“The results of the genome sequencing show that this strain of COVID-19 is not a type that we have previously seen in New Zealand and is not linked to any existing cases in New Zealand.
“Particularly reassuring is that it is not related to the recent Auckland outbreak or other recent cases.”
Bloomfield said that after the community case, no new infections were found, either in the managed isolation or in the community.
The man’s close contact swabs who had returned so far had negative results.
Authorities continue to investigate the source of the transmission. However, they believed it likely came from a different ship the man had worked on last Tuesday or Wednesday.
That ship, the Sofrana Surville, had left New Zealand and was heading for Brisbane.
The Health Minister had now asked that the crews of the ships in transit be tested, which previously did not happen routinely, Bloomfield said.
In total, 1,530 confirmed coronavirus cases have been found in New Zealand, 37 of which are active, he said.
Five previous cases had recovered on Monday.
An emerging coronavirus testing station had been set up in the ports of Taranaki, where another ship the man had worked on, the Ken Rei, had docked.
What is known so far about the latest community case of Covid-19
The most recent case from the community is a marine electronics technician who had recently worked on a ship that traveled to Auckland, Taranaki and Lyttelton.
It was anchored near Napier on Sunday as the crew waited for public health clearance before disembarking.
No one on board had symptoms.
The crew is considered close contacts of the man and is being tested.
The man wore a mask and gloves while on the ship for six hours when it docked in Taranaki ports on Wednesday.
He was tested hours after developing Covid-19 symptoms on October 16 while at his workplace in Auckland.
The man had likely been contagious two days earlier, Bloomfield said.
Rooms in a hotel and motel where he stayed on a business trip to New Plymouth last week had been thoroughly cleaned.
He drove alone from New Plymouth to his home in Auckland on Wednesday night.
It is not known if it stopped anywhere on the trip.
The man spent Thursday at home, and only went looking for food.
His household contacts are isolated and are being evaluated.
Bloomfield said staff at the testing center where the man was cleaned on Friday did everything right.
The man is now in the Jet Park quarantine facility near Auckland Airport.
The case showed how well New Zealand’s processes were working, but “the case is another reminder that Covid-19 is not going away anytime soon,” Bloomfield said.
The man had been regularly tested for coronavirus because of his work.
On October 2 he had a negative result.
