Four new arrivals have tested positive for COVID-19 in managed isolation facilities over the past 48 hours, but there remains no evidence of the virus in the community.
In an update on Sunday, the Ministry of Health also warned New Zealanders who have recently returned from Australia to stay up-to-date with the country's locations of interest after a couple in Victoria, which continues to battle an outbreak of COVID-19, broke lockdown and travelled to Queensland via regional New South Wales (NSW).
Meanwhile in New Zealand, two cases under investigation from May 6 have now been confirmed as historical infections. One of these cases was from India, and the other from the US.
A recovered individual may test positive for the virus if the swab detects residual viral fragments, but they are no longer considered infectious.
Two people who returned positive results for COVID-19 12 days into their managed isolation periods have now also been deemed as historical infections, the ministry added. The returnees, who arrived on May 29 from the Philippines via Singapore and the UAE via Malaysia respectively, are not considered infectious and remain in isolation in Auckland.
The first of the four new cases arrived on June 7 from Germany via Singapore and returned a positive result due to routine testing on day three of their stay. The second arrived on June 8 from India via Qatar and also tested positive on day three.
The third and fourth cases arrived on June 11 from Egypt via the UAE and Uganda via the UAE respectively. Both tested positive for COVID-19 on arrival.
Since January 1, 2021, 74 of 536 cases have been classified as historical.
As of Sunday, there are 27 active cases of COVID-19 in New Zealand. To date, the country has recorded 2352 cases of the virus.
"A reminder to everyone to please remain vigilant and stick to the basics: staying home if unwell and getting advice about having a test, washing hands, coughing and sneezing into the elbow, wearing masks or face coverings on all public transport, and keeping track of where you’ve been - scan QR codes wherever you go and turn on Bluetooth tracing in the app dashboard," a spokesperson for the ministry said.
Hospitalised cases in Auckland
Two hospitalised patients with COVID-19 continue to be treated at Auckland's Middlemore Hospital. Both were transferred from the Jet Park quarantine facility earlier this week.
The two are in stable conditions and were taken to hospital safely using strict infection prevention and control measures.
For privacy reasons, no further details about these patients' care will be released, the ministry said.
Quarantine-free travel pause with Victoria
The suspension of quarantine-free travel with Victoria will continue until Thursday as a precautionary approach, the ministry reiterated. The pause will be reviewed again on Wednesday.
Anyone who is eligible can continue returning to New Zealand on 'green flights', meaning they will not be required to isolate when they arrive. However, they must provide evidence of a negative test, taken within three days of departure. A PCR test is strongly preferred.
All passengers travelling on a return green flight must also complete the Nau Mai Rā contact information and complete the health declaration to confirm they have not visited a location of interest.
Travellers who are not covered by the restrictions in Victoria - and who have not visited a location of interest at the specified times - can still travel quarantine-free from other states and will not require a pre-departure test. All travellers to New Zealand are encouraged to download and use the NZ COVID-19 Tracer app, stay put if they are sick, and wear a mask on all flights and public transport.
To get the most up-to-date information, go to the Unite Against COVID-19 website.
Locations of interest in Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales
Health authorities in Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales continue to announce further locations of interest after a COVID-positive couple breached Victoria's lockdown rules and travelled from Melbourne to Queensland via regional New South Wales (NSW).
The couple travelled through the NSW towns of Dubbo, Forbes, Gillenbah and Moree between June 1-4, and through Toowoomba, Caloundra, Buddina and Baringa in Queensland between June 5-8.
Victoria has also added new locations of interest following the identification of an additional community case of COVID-19 on Saturday.
Anyone in New Zealand who was in these areas at the specified times is urged to check the following websites to determine whether they were at any of the locations of interest:
- Victoria locations of interest
- Queensland locations of interest
- latest COVID-19 case locations and alerts in NSW
Anyone at these locations of interest at the specified times should call Healthline on 0800 358 5453, get tested, and self-isolate until they return a negative result.
One person contacted Healthline on Saturday to confirm they visited one of the locations of interest during the specified time. The individual, who was self-isolating, has now returned a negative result.
The individual had already arrived in New Zealand when they were notified by Australian authorities that they had visited a location of interest.
Anyone who was at a location of interest at the specified times cannot travel to New Zealand within 14 days of the exposure event.
Testing information
The total number of tests processed by laboratories to date is 2,195,282. On Saturday, 4152 tests were completed, with the seven-day rolling average sitting at 3907.
This testing data does not include the number of tests processed by Waikato DHB, as its systems remain down following a cyber attack. The data continues to be recorded manually and will be added to the tally once the systems have been restored. So far, the manual data is showing an average of around 200 tests processed per day since May 17.
