Covid 19 coronavirus: death of brothers Nigel and Alan Te Hiko is a ‘significant loss’

LAST VIRUS
* Auckland primary school student tests positive, school closed for rest of week
* Special interview: Ashley Bloomfield on the future of the virus
* The government reserves a red sea before a ‘long and deep’ recession
* NZ condemned with mild praise for Covid’s response
* 79 active cases in New Zealand; there have been 29.6 million cases and 936,000 deaths worldwide

A Kiwi family that has lost two family members to Covid-19 in as many weeks is struggling to understand these “significant losses.”

Nigel Te Hiko, 54, died yesterday at Waikato Hospital, almost two weeks after his brother Alan died in Auckland from the virus.

“We are absolutely devastated,” his nephew Chris Mckenzie told the Herald. “Both people leave a huge gap in our family. It is difficult to understand such significant losses so soon.”

The deaths come as the World Health Organization is set to announce a new record for the number of daily global cases.

According to John Hopkins University, which has been mapping virus cases around the world, more than 350,000 cases were recorded in a 24-hour period earlier this week. This surpasses the previous daily record of 308,000 cases, last weekend.

The number of cases is increasing in India: it has had more than five million cases, only surpassed by the 6.6 million cases in the United States. Globally, there have been 29.6 million cases and 936,000 deaths.

The man from Tokoroa, Nigel Te Hiko, was one of seven siblings and survived by his adopted daughter Gwen and 12-year-old moko Mahina-ā-rangi.

It was believed that he hired Covid from Alan, who had worked at the Americold facility in Auckland.

“Even though Nigel did everything he could to ensure the safety of everyone else, he succumbed. His message to everyone would be to follow the rules explicitly because it is a fierce and deadly disease,” McKenzie said.

He said the family was extremely grateful to the Waikato District Board of Health for doing everything it could to allow his loved ones to be around while he was in isolation in the Intensive Care Unit where he had been since Aug. 26.

“We couldn’t be in the room, but we could be with him and sing songs and pray.”

Te Hiko was the 25th Covid-related death in New Zealand.

Today, three people remained in the hospital with Covid-19: one in isolation in a ward and two in intensive care. There were 57 people at the Auckland quarantine facility linked to the community group, 27 of whom had tested positive for the virus.

A new Covid case was reported today: a woman in her 30s who was in controlled isolation after returning from Dubai.

Cousin Phyllis Tahere said that Te Hiko was the father of all her nieces and nephews and koro of all her moko.

“Nigel was definitely a leader in the whānau. He joined the whānau. One call from him and everyone would flock to him. He was a father figure to all of our nieces and nephews; he was the one they would turn to when they needed advice. united to the family.

“Some of our whanau, our youngsters, are hard to handle, and Nigel did it too when asked. He would be tough when he needed it.

“It was because of his great heart and his immense love. The door to our whānau farm was always open, no matter what time of day or night. Nigel’s door and heart were always open.”

Te Hiko worked for her people for over 20 years, first at the then Raukawa Māori Trust Board, which would become the Raukawa Settlement trust.

He had a background in social work, but developed his skills and experience as a researcher and historian.

Raukawa President Vanessa Ephraim said she was a supportive Pou for her and the people.

“For Nigel, it is impossible not to acknowledge his immense ability and his invaluable support for so many, how exceptional he was.

“Nigel was a Raukawa historian whose love of knowledge and passion for accumulating and increasing his shared history and that of his tribe and mātauranga leaves a lasting legacy.”

“He was an incredibly humble man, did not yearn to be the center of attention and was an immense support pool often in the background, supporting leaders with whaikōrero when necessary, history and advice, and with the ammunition of research and learning. knowledge that they were crucial to the conclusion of the Raukawa agreement negotiations. “

For the past several years, he had been burdened by his deteriorating health and had problems with his kidneys.

“He has left huge shoes to fill for the iwi, but we are so grateful that he has left so many words and writings, which will feed the minds and hearts of many of this generation and of the many to come,” he said. .

South Waikato Deputy Mayor and Tokoroa Councilor Bill Machen said Te Hiko was a “good member of the community.”

“I had a lot of time for him. He was a gentleman and a good guy.”

Chief Health Officer Dr. Ashley Bloomfield said today that Te Hiko’s family had a message for New Zealanders:

“The whānau man has asked us to tell the country that the coronavirus is so real and to be vigilant and cautious,” Bloomfield said.

“They have made an appeal to all New Zealanders: If you are sick and have symptoms, stay home and seek advice on how to get tested.”

Bloomfield said the man’s death highlighted the seriousness of Covid-19 and said his thoughts were with Te Hiko’s family.

“Ngāti Raukawa has lost a rangatira. They mourn the loss of their loved one.

“I can’t imagine how devastating this is for this whānau.”

Bloomfield said today that the healthcare worker who tested positive for Covid-19 had now been epidemiologically linked to one of the community cases at the quarantine facility. The person required hospitalization and was evaluated and assisted by the health worker.

85 close contacts had been identified in all three gym classes at Les Mills Takapuna and all were self-isolating, he said. To date, 80 of those people have tested negative. Of the 195 casual contacts identified, 91 had been tested and were negative.