New Zealand, the country that took the world by storm because of their steadfast action against coronavirus pandemic has had two reported cases recently. They were relate to two women from the same family, both of whom had travelled from the UK and were given special permission to visit a dying parent.
The women – one in her 30s and one in her 40s – arrived in New Zealand from the UK on the 7 June, via Doha and Brisbane, and entered quarantine. One of them had displayed symptoms, but had not made notice of it, citing previous symptoms. They were diagnosed positive on Tuesday, after the test was carried out on Monday.
This effectively ends the country’s 24 day streak of no cases. New Zealand’s health minister David Clark apologised for not having had proper checks and suspended the exemptions that were given to quarantine.
A couple weeks ago, the country was declared coronavirus free and had removed all restrictions that were put in place. There were strict border restrictions that remained, exempting medical workers as well as those having emergencies. Due to the detection of new cases, this exemption has been removed by the government.
The newly recorded cases brings New Zealand’s total number of cases since the outbreak began to 1,506. The death toll remains unchanged at 22.