New Zealand Records First Cases Of Coronavirus In 102 Days Prompting New Restrictions

New Zealand has broken its 102 day streak of no new community transmitted coronavirus cases.

Four members of the same family have tested positive for Covid-19 in South Auckland, prompting the city to reintroduce lockdown restrictions. None of the family members had travelled recently.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said at a press conference: "We are asking people in Auckland to stay home to stop the spread. Act as if you have COVID, and as if the people around you have COVID."

She said the new restrictions for the city are being temporarily imposed so that health officials can 'assess the situation'.

PA

Ms Ardern pleaded with residents not to 'rush to the supermarket tonight' and panic buy items. However, that's exactly what people did and stores were wiped clear of items.

New Zealand's director-general of health, Dr. Ashley Bloomfield, said in a statement: "This case is a wake-up call against any complacency that may have set in. We cannot afford to let this virus spread.

"We have seen how quickly it can lead to a wider resurgence in communities overseas. Places that have had COVID-19 under control have seen flare-ups and gone back into a full lockdown."

"We are working to not let that happen here. We've done this before and we can do it again.

A three day lockdown has been announced in Auckland.

PA

People in the country's largest city are now asked to stay at home, large gatherings will be cancelled and banned, non-essential businesses will be closed and the rest of New Zealand will have social distancing restrictions reintroduced.

Since the global pandemic started earlier this year, New Zealand has been held up as an example of how to deal with the devastating disease, with 1,219 infections and 22 deaths recorded from Covid-19.

After reaching the milestone of 100 days without a single case of the virus at the weekend, Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield warned that the disease can return at any moment.

In a statement, he said: "Achieving 100 days without community transmission is a significant milestone, however, as we all know, we can't afford to be complacent.

"We have seen overseas how quickly the virus can re-emerge and spread in places where it was previously under control, and we need to be prepared to quickly stamp out any future cases in New Zealand."

Previously, all 22 active cases of the virus were returned travellers who were in hotel quarantine.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Trending Journalist at LADbible. His first job was as a newsreader and journalist at the award winning Sydney radio station, Macquarie Radio. He was solely responsible for the content broadcast on multiple stations across Australia when the MH17, Germanwings and AirAsia disasters unfolded. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign.

@stewartperrie