Coromandel businesses visited by a potentially infectious COVID-19 case are crossing their fingers no one in the community has picked up the virus.
Staff Newshub spoke to back the swift move to alert level 4, even if it's financially painful, saying it has to be done to stop things from getting even worse.
New Zealand's first community case in more than five months was picked up on Tuesday, followed by four more overnight. While all are linked to one another, there's no clear link from any to the border, suggesting there are more cases out there waiting to be found.
The Ministry of Health has so far named 11 locations of interest - places where the original positive case visited over the past six days. Most are in Coromandel, where he visited over the weekend. Health officials say he became symptomatic while in the township on Saturday and may have been infectious from Thursday.
On Saturday morning, the 58-year-old North Shore man popped into a BP service station on Tiki Rd.
"It's a small community and that one person's just jeopardised our whole community because he's gone everywhere," employee Te told Newshub. "Everybody knows everybody in one way or another, we're all linked, our little community But it happens. You just have to carry on."
Te was at work - petrol stations can open under level 4 as essential services. She said it was pretty quiet on Wednesday, but everyone who did come in was wearing a mask or "chucking a scarf around their face".
She wasn't at work on Saturday when the case visited, and the person who was is self-isolating. She said she backs the move to level 4 - echoing the Prime Minister, who on Tuesday night specifically cited Australia's struggle to contain its outbreak.
"Yes, definitely - look at New South Wales," said Te. "They took their time and look what happened. So you might as well lock it down until everybody gets cleared, then drop the levels. It makes huge sense."
Kaye Ward of Hereford 'n' a Pickle, a shop selling meat straight from the farm and other food, said her initial reaction on being told they were a location of interest was "oh no".
"It's something you really, really don't want to happen. but luckily for us at the Pickle, it was an extremely quiet day."
The Hereford 'n' a Pickle is in Colville, about half an hour's drive north of Coromandel. The positive case spent nearly an hour there early on Saturday afternoon.
Ward said she and her daughter, who was working that day, are now in self-isolation. Neither are showing symptoms, and both will be getting tested on Wednesday. Like Te, she backs the move to alert level 4 - hoping it will be as short as possible.
"It will be tough because we've just had to walk out and leave everything. But we're mainly concerned about people - that everybody is okay."
The case was briefly at Richardson's Real Estate Coromandel later that afternoon. A spokesperson said they were complying with level 4 guidelines, but declined to comment further.
Staff at Devonport Pharmacy in Auckland, where the case visited on Monday afternoon, said they were too busy to talk.
Under level 4, cafes are shut. Coromandel's UMU Cafe was visited by the positive case on three different days.
"We are as shocked as all of you, but are trying to keep our staff and customers as informed as we are," the cafe posted on Facebook, praising their use of the COVID Tracer app which allowed affected locations to be notified as quickly as possible.
"We are lucky that this case had done the right thing and scanned in everywhere and got tested quickly after feeling symptomatic. They also visited other locations in Coromandel town and so our hearts go out to all of the businesses and workers affected at this time."
Crumb in Grey Lynn, visited on Thursday morning, urged customers to "be the awesome responsible members of the community you are and follow the correct steps".
"We are all in this together, remember to be kind and to look out for one another," they wrote on Instagram. "We can’t wait to serve you up oat flatties and porridge once it's safe to do so."
While accommodation providers can operate under level 4, the Star and Garter Hotel in Coromandel has had to shut after hosting the case on Saturday night.
"Along with several other businesses in Coro, we have been advised to shut immediately until we are advised what to do next," the hotel wrote on Facebook, urging patrons to isolate and get tested.
Other locations of interest couldn't be reached and either hadn't made an update on social media or didn't have a social media presence.
