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George Block / Stuff
An NZDF medical specialist inside the Waldorf St Martins on Monday night, where the army houses nearly 250 service members in central Auckland while they work in isolation and quarantine facilities.
An employee of the Wellington Defense Force contracted the coronavirus from a uniformed colleague at a workshop inside the army’s temporary apartment base in central Auckland.
Staff at Wednesday’s training workshop, whose exact purpose remains unclear, took no precautions beyond the Covid-19 alert level one rules.
That was despite the presence of a uniformed member of the military working inside the Jet Park quarantine hotel near Auckland Airport, the tightly controlled facility where confirmed Covid-19 cases are shipped.
The service member, who has come to be known as Case A, was unknowingly carrying the virus after contracting it while working inside Jet Park.
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During the workshop they passed it on to the civilian, referred to by the Health Ministry as Case B, who flew back to Wellington on Thursday night.
None of his close contacts, other than Case B, had tested positive as of Monday.
Sources close to the managed isolation and quarantine system, who said Things on the circumstances of the broadcast, they have expressed surprise and concern about what happened.
A manager of an agency involved in running the facility said it was “disappointing” that the civilian was flown in from Wellington to attend the meeting rather than using the teleconference, especially given the presence of at least one staff member. who works regularly within Jet Park.
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The meeting took place in the conference room of the Waldorf St Martins, an apartment hotel in central Auckland hidden behind the Symonds St Cemetery near Grafton Bridge.
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The military has reserved it to house nearly 250 people working in the city’s managed quarantine and isolation facilities.
The Defense Force has yet to answer questions about the exact nature and purpose of Wednesday’s workshop, but sources described it as a “course.”
An emailed statement Monday night, attributed to Air Force Group Captain Glenn Gowthorpe, Commander of Joint Task Force 650.7, said it was led by two Defense Force civilians and assisted only by personnel. of the Defense Force.
The service members who were staying inside the Waldorf were now locked up.
“All NZDF Auckland security personnel are currently isolated in their rooms when they are not on duty at the Managed Isolation and Quarantine facility,” said Gowthorpe.
“These restrictions are currently being reviewed in consultation between the Auckland Regional Public Health Service and the NZDF, with a key focus on ensuring the safety of the people of Aotearoa.”
Things asked the Defense Force why the uniformed employee working at Jet Park was allowed to attend the course with employees from other areas, given their exposure to Covid cases.
Joseph Johnson / Stuff
A soldier working security at a managed isolation facility in Christchurch.
Gowthorpe said that military security personnel at the quarantine facility follow “strict guidelines from the Health Ministry” while working.
But like police and medical personnel at Jet Park, they were not locked up after hours during alert level one, he said.
“We will work with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment on how to improve the procedures for learning from this event.
“Obviously, it is a complex working environment for all agencies, and we are always examining ways to strengthen the resilience of the system that cares for our New Zealand returnees.”
All Auckland Defense Force security personnel are required to stay in their rooms when not on duty, and are told to wear masks at all times when outside of their home bubble, he said.
They were immediately called to the Waldorf and isolated when the Defense Forces learned of the positive case, Gowthorpe said.
When asked if the staff member at Wednesday’s workshop took precautions such as wearing a mask or observing social distancing in the workshop, Gowthorpe said the staff adhered to all of the Ministry of Health’s level one rules.
Those rules do not include the use of masks or physical distancing.
