There are fears two Auckland events could be Covid super spreaders, with close to 2000 people having come into contact with a case in just one night.
Sky City Casino on day two of the August 2021 lockdown. Photo: RNZ / Robert Smith
On Friday 13 August, a now-positive case took late-night trips to a nightclub and casino, both in central Auckland.
A Covid-19 modeller says these types of events are of particular concern.
A nightclub may be the most fertile ground for Covid-19 to spread. It happened in South Korea where a young man, unknowingly infected at the time, was the origin case of a chain that spread to more than a hundred people.
That was in May last year, with the original Covid-19 strain. The Delta variant is much more contagious than that.
One of New Zealand's first ten cases visited a nighclub Bar 101, in central Auckland, last Friday night from 11:30pm to 1:15am.
"This shows that there quite a high risk of a superspreading event," Dr Michael Plank said, a Canterbury University expert in mathematical modelling of complex biological systems.
On the same night as that, a case went to the main gaming floor of Sky City Casino in Auckland, between 1:15am and 3:00am.
Sky City has determined 240 staff working that night are close contacts, and there were around a thousand patrons on the gaming floor, also deemed close contacts.
"It's unlikely that all of those would have been infected - that would be very unlucky... but certainly there is the possibility for quite a large number of cases from these. We really have to wait and see the results of the testing," said Dr Plank.
The most important thing, Dr Plank said, is that all close contacts completely isolate and get tested.
Sky City said it's been working quickly to contact staff, advising them to isolate and get tested.
Joe Carolan from Unite Union, which represents some of the casino workers at Sky City, said the company's been in good communication and worked well with them, and now it's a waiting game.
"We've obviously learned from the Australian experience how quickly this thing can move... you can see already the numbers we're talking about is a lot," Carolan said.
Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
John Lawrenson owns Bar 101, the visited nightclub, and only found out it was a location of interest through the media.
He says 900 people went through the club that night, but it looks to be only 400 or so at the same time as the positive case, with patrons split between two floors.
"That is a large number of individuals in an enclosed space over 90 minutes, two hours. A relatively tight and enclosed space when there's that number of people in there, so I mean you'd have to think there's some risk of transmission," Lawrenson.
Another case is a teacher at Avondale College, which has nearly 3000 students, and then more staff on top of that.
The staff member was considered infectious on Thursday and Friday last week, and all staff and students are considered close contacts, asked to isolate for 14 days.
On Monday and Tuesday this week, a group from Avondale College travelled to Rotorua for a choir event, the Big Sing Cadenza.
The chief executive of the New Zealand Chorale Federation Christine Argyle said all schools who were there are waiting to see what happens with Avondale.
Today five of the reported cases were linked to the school.
"Really thinking of all the choirs and singers that were at Cadenza, and really appreciate the anxiety that some of them will be feeling. We hope that they are staying positive," she said.
There are now 106 public locations of interest in Auckland, and 14 in Coromandel town and close surrounds, with full details listed on the Ministry of Health's website.
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. Face coverings are mandatory for all people - both employees and customers - at businesses and services operating at Alert Level 4 involving customer contact.
For more information on Alert Level 4 go to [the government website www.covid19.govt.nz]
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