The identification of six new cases of Covid-19 in the community today vindicates the government's decision yesterday to lockdown the country.
Wellington's Cuba Street was empty this morning. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
All the new cases are being linked to a 58-year-old North Shore resident, diagnosed with the virus yesterday. It has been confirmed he has the Delta variant. One of those new cases today is a fully-vaccinated nurse at Auckland City Hospital and another is a 25-year-old school teacher at Auckland's Avondale College.
Genome sequencing has determined the outbreak is linked to cases in New South Wales.
Although this is New Zealand's second nationwide alert-level 4 lockdown, after the first in March 2020, authorities and the public are navigating new territory.
The spectre of the Delta variant of Covid-19 looms over society, its ability to spread easily and fast made notorious by New South Wales' desperate battle to contain it over past weeks.
Having been complacent at the beginning, Sydney is now in its seventh week of restrictions, including a stay-at-home order.
Unlike the Australian state, New Zealand has once again followed the health-response mantra of going "hard and early".
During the lockdown, schools and businesses will remain closed, people will have to stay at home, except for supermarket shopping, pharmacy visits, petrol station use, exercise in the neighbourhood and necessary medical treatment or testing.
Health officials will use contact-tracing to determine places of interest and close contacts of those infected, attempting to progressively closing down avenues where the variant can spread.
It is a frantic race against the clock. With the six new cases announced today, Auckland and the rest of the country face a perilous next few days, or potentially weeks, as the capacity of contact-tracing systems are stretched to the limit. More cases are expected.
Minister for Covid-19 Response Chris Hipkins has said contact tracing may not be enough to keep the Delta variant from spreading.
Locations of interest are growing and the Ministry of Health is updating its list online regularly.
It is therefore incumbent on the public to keep safe and exercise consistent caution when going about their daily business over the next period.
Ways to keep safe
Stay at home: The number one basic rule is stay at home where at all possible. If you don't need to leave the house, don't. For example, if you don't need to use the supermarket, wait until you really do. Do one shop per week, not several. Every time you leave your home you are tempting fate, however remote you believe the possibility of contracting the virus is. This requires you to have a fundamental change of mindset.
Masks and distancing: Wear a face mask and keep a two-metre distance from others whenever you leave your home. This also requires a fundamental adjustment on how you move spatially and interact with your surroundings. It is extremely easy to stray into people's personal space, particularly when food shopping. Exercise not only caution, but patience, allowing people to pick up items and move away before you approach to pick up items too.
When exercising and passing people in the street, remember it only took two doors opening simultaneously in an MIQ facility corridor to pass the virus on - it transmits within seconds. Delta moves in a way other Covid-19 variants didn't have the ability to. Give people a wide berth. From 11.59pm tonight it will be mandatory to wear a mask at taxi stands, in clinics, supermarkets, petrol stations and pharmacies when out.
Stay in your bubble: Remaining in your bubble is the best way to gain peace of mind your Covid-19-free status has not been compromised. Just because someone is a close friend or extended member of the family doesn't make them safe or exempt from the rules of Delta avoidance. This type of complacency is what causes clusters to appear and spread. Don't give Delta a way to move around during lockdown. Stay in your bubble.
Get tested if you have symptoms: If you are sick, call your doctor or Healthline on 0800 358 5453 for advice about getting tested. Follow their advice. Do not go to a GP clinic without first informing the them you have symptoms.
Scan QR codes: Scan QR codes whenever you leave your home. There has been widespread complacency about using the Covid-19 scanning app since the last community case back in February. Use of the Covid-19 Tracer app has been dropping since March, recent data suggesting daily QR scanning has been only between 3-5 percent of the ideal level.
It is essential the system is adhered to. If you haven't already downloaded it on to your phone, do so now. Easy-to-follow instructions on how to do this are in the Ministry of Health website.
Scanning will ensure you are alerted by health officials that you are a close contact of someone diagnosed with the virus, so that you can get tested fast. This too can involve a change of mindset for some people, from a more libertarian 'right not to' attitude, to a more communal 'it's right to' position. We are all part of an interconnected society, we depend on each other to thrive as a community. Using the app is a means of protecting society as a whole, an expression of civic duty.
Do the basics - wash your hands. Photo: 123RF
[il] Practice good hygiene. Wash your hands often, as this avoids spreading Covid-19. The Ministry of Health and the World Health Organisation advise wetting hands with running water and applying enough soap to cover the hands. It's important to scrub all surfaces of the hands, including the back of hands, between fingers and under nails for at least 20 seconds, before rinsing with running water. It is required after sneezing or coughing.
[il] Rules apply to vaccinated: If you are fully vaccinated the rules still apply to you - follow them scrupulously. Fully vaccinated people with the Delta variant can spread the virus to others. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC warns previous variants typically produced less virus in the body of infected fully-vaccinated people with a 'breakthrough infection' than in an unvaccinated person. However, the Delta variant seems to produce the same high amount of virus in both unvaccinated and fully vaccinated people. Although it says fully vaccinated people are likely infectious for less time than unvaccinated people.
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This is an official COVID-19 ALERT.
All of New Zealand is now at Covid-19 alert level 4.
The alert level will be reviewed after 3 days for all areas EXCEPT Auckland & Coromandel Peninsula which is likely to remain at level 4 for an initial period of 7 days.
A community case of Covid-19 has been identified.
Stay at home where possible & follow the Alert Level 4 guidelines. This will stop the spread of COVID-19 and SAVE LIVES.
Everyone is asked to:
Wear a mask and keep a 2 metre distance from others whenever you leave your home.
If you are sick, call your doctor or Healthline on 0800 358 5453 for advice about getting tested.
Keep on scanning QR codes whenever you leave your home.
Practice good hygiene - wash hands often.
Services including supermarkets, pharmacies, clinics & petrol stations will stay open at Alert Level 4.
For more information on Alert Level 4 go to [the government website www.covid19.govt.nz]
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Kia Kaha - Stay Strong