Covid 19 coronavirus: the Ken Rei logging ship that carries close contacts of the new Covid case remains anchored in Napier

The port of Napier is refusing to allow a ship with 21 close contacts of a port worker that tested positive on the dock for Covid-19, meaning the crew could be forced to sail to Auckland.

The logging ship Ken Rei was due to arrive in port Sunday to load logs, but it has been anchored off the coast since Sunday afternoon.

It carries 21 crew members, all of whom are considered close contacts from New Zealand’s most recent Covid-19 community case.

The dockworker, a marine electronics engineer from Auckland, who went to work in New Plymouth last week, tested positive for Covid-19 on October 16.

Health Director General Dr. Ashley Bloomfield told a news conference Monday that the crew were receiving daily health checks by radio and that none had shown symptoms.

The people on the ship had yet to be tested and options were being considered to facilitate this, including whether a ship or helicopter could make it to the ship or it could be sent to Auckland.

Napier Port did not want the ship to dock, Bloomfield said.

Work is still under way on what to do if any of the 21 crew on the ship off Napier tested positive, he said.

Turning the ship into a Petri dish for Covid-19 was one of the considerations, he said, and the crew members were trying to take precautions.

“There is urgency,” he said when asked about how to handle the ship.

But he said all the crew members were asymptomatic and that anchoring off shore at this time was not the cause of any frustration while the next move was sorted out.

The ministry had no preference on whether the ship docked at Napier or elsewhere, he said.

A spokesperson for the port of Napier confirmed Monday that the ship remains at sea and has not been in the port of Napier.

“Our position remains that the ship must remain anchored offshore. We will await further instructions and assist public health as necessary.”

A spokesperson for Hawke’s Bay DHB said it continues to work closely with the Ministry of Health and port officials.

The New Zealand Maritime Union said the new Covid case shows the “urgent need” for a reform of coastal shipping.

The positive test from dockworkers highlighted the need to limit the number of international ports in New Zealand and implement national coastal transport in a hub and radio model, the union said.

The union’s national secretary, Joe Fleetwood, said the union has raised concerns about the risk of international ships repeatedly carrying domestic cargo.

He said that almost all domestic shipping is carried by international ships with international crews that are not covered by New Zealand law.

“It means that each of our ports is an international border point and puts our members and the public at risk.

“That doesn’t make any sense. Other nations operate a small number of international ports as hubs for their protected national maritime cargo, which gives them greater control over the security of their borders and their supply chains.”

“There is a reason our international airports are limited to large sites that can have strong border security, we should do the same with our ports.

He said there should be two on the North Island and two on the South Island, which would be “safe entry points for goods.”

“The rest of the cargo must be moved by New Zealand-flagged vessels that operate under our law and are staffed by our team of five million.

“This type of arrangement is standard for many of our business partners and is the way we used to do things before the deregulation of the industry in the 1990s.

“Nationwide managed coastal shipping offers increased border security, lower carbon emissions and road congestion, more economic security and stronger regional supply chains.

Fleetwood said the union has been talking to the government “for a while” about the issue and that both the Labor Party and the Greens have “repeatedly supported the need to strengthen New Zealand-flagged coastal shipping.”