Northlanders are becoming increasingly frustrated as they try to figure out the movements of a Covid-positive Auckland woman who visited the rohe.
A Whangārei motel has been added to Tai Tokerau's locations of interest today, but details of the woman's trip remain scant as she refuses to cooperate with authorities.
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Ramped up testing has found no trace of the virus, but health leaders say the North is not in the clear yet.
Te Hauora o Ngāpuhi chief executive Te Ropu Poa said any positive cases would likely crop up over the next 48 hours.
"We will know over the next couple of days the extent of Covid being in Northland, and then you will see the difference in the communities and how they come together to take care of one another."
A sign for Covid-19 testing in Kawakawa. Photo: RNZ / Nita Blake-Persen
She said without the locations of interest being made public, people were relying on their own trusted networks to keep safe.
"When there are delays around continued investigations for information, our whānau start to develop their own kumara vine and connect the dots - or connect the communications - on who knows what."
The arrival of Delta in Kawakawa has not been welcomed by locals, but the refusal by the person who may have brought it to share their movements is making things even more frustrating.
Thomas Joyce and Patricia Simeon at Joyce Quality Meats in Kawakawa. Photo: RNZ / Nita Blake-Persen
Patricia Simeon, who co-owns Joyce Quality Meats in Whangarei, said the woman was being selfish by not sharing her locations - and that of the woman she travelled with.
"Own up, I know they'll catch a lot of slack from the community - like a lot of slack... if they are well known or people do know them, but it's just thinking about the people that are here, our vulnerable people, our kaumatua and kuia," she said.
Kawakawa local Kahu Mahanga agreed, saying one person had spoiled the hard work of many.
Kawakawa local Kahu Mahanga. Photo: RNZ / Nita Blake-Persen
"We stick by the rules, it's just when these out of towners think they can come up on these false papers - it just puts us all at risk," he said.
Along with Kawakawa, the woman visited Paihia, Kamo and Whangārei - including two service stations, two hotels and a dairy in Onerahi.
Police are relying heavily on CCTV footage to back-trace exposure sites, but dairy owner Rakesh Chauhan said his camera wasn't able to be used because it was wiped by the time they were contacted by police.
A woman who travelled north with the case was located in west Auckland on Monday night - she's among 21 close contacts who have so far been linked.
The Ministry of Health has not confirmed the location of those contacts.
Far North District Councillor Kelly Stratford said rumours were flourishing in lieu of official information, and it seemed that somebody's privacy rights were being put ahead of the community's right to feel safe.
Far North District Councillor Kelly Stratford in Kawakawa. Photo: RNZ / Nita Blake-Persen
But she said everyone had a part to play in keeping safe - which involved getting tested, isolating and getting vaccinated.
Vaccinations ramped up over the weekend and there were 738 tests carried out across the rohe yesterday - nearly 3000 tests over the past four days.
Ngāti Hine Health Trust clinical nurse lead Angee Hobson said there were around 50 people through the Kawakawa testing centre in the first few hours it was open today.
She said some of those were people who may have suspected they were linked to the case.
"It doesn't really matter, as long as they know they're making the right choice for them and their families, that's all we need to know."
Tai Tokerau Border Control was also active in Kawakawa today, stopping vehicles with police assistance and providing information to motorists about the Covid situation.
Tai Tokerau Border Control communications and logistics manager Nyze Manuel in Kawakawa. Photo: RNZ / Nita Blake-Persen
The group's communications and logistics manager, Nyze Manuel, said she encouraged the Covid positive case to come forward to protect the community, and it wasn't about naming or shaming her.
"We're just trying to figure out where you've been so that our people are safe, because if we don't know where you've been and you've got Covid, then there's a high possibility we'll have clusters all over the place.
The Covid case has brought an increase in vaccinations - yesterday 459 first doses and 630 second doses were administered, totalling 1,089 doses across Northland.
To date, 188,382 doses have been administered across Northland, comprising 110,446 first doses and 77,936 second doses.