People who visited an Auckland pet store on Saturday should go into isolation, the Ministry of Health says, after an Air New Zealand crew member visited there.
Animates Manukau Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
The ministry reported two new cases of Covid-19 in managed isolation today, with no new community cases.
The ministry said one case arrived on 17 November from India via the United Arab Emirates, and the other arrived on 19 November from the United States.
Both tested positive around day three of their stay in managed isolation and were taken to the quarantine facility.
Yesterday, Air New Zealand also announced it was investigating after one of its crew members tested positive for Covid-19 in China.
The ministry today said the case was still classified as "under investigation" but out of an abundance of caution was following health protocols as though the person was a confirmed case in New Zealand.
That would include sending notifications to members of the public who visited Animates Manukau on Saturday 21 November, and staff at other businesses and shops the person visited on 20 and 21 November were being asked to isolate and seek testing if they showed symptoms.
The ministry said members of the public at those other shops and businesses were not considered to be at risk, but other locations may be notified by Auckland Regional Public Health Service as more information became available.
A Covid-19 notice has been put up at Animates Manukau, where a person who later tested positive to the virus had visited. Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins this morning said the crew with the person who tested positive would arrive back in New Zealand tomorrow morning, when they would be isolated and receive fast-tracked testing.
The staff member tested negative in New Zealand on 18 November but returned a positive test four days later when they arrived in Shanghai.
Hipkins said the government had still not ruled out the possibility the person caught Covid-19 in New Zealand.
One previously confirmed case was also reclassified as historical, the ministry said, meaning there were 53 active cases of Covid-19 in New Zealand.
Total confirmed cases rose to 1675, and laboratories completed 3560 tests yesterday
There were two new cases of Covid-19 yesterday, both in managed isolation facilities, and no new community transmission cases.
See RNZ's full coverage of Covid-19
- If you have symptoms of the coronavirus, call the NZ Covid-19 Healthline on 0800 358 5453 (+64 9 358 5453 for international SIMs) or call your GP - don't show up at a medical centre