Three new community cases of Covid-19 in New Zealand have been confirmed.
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins this afternoon held a news conference in the Beehive with Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield and said New Zealand remains at Alert Level 1.
They said the latest cases are a mother, father and daughter from Papatoetoe in South Auckland.
The mother and daughter have returned tests which confirm they are "new and active".
The mother works at LSG Sky chefs, one of the world's largest airline catering providers. The father is self-employed.
One close contact of the three people in the community had tested negative, Hipkins said.
"We are gathering all the facts as quickly as we can."
The family are being moved to Jet Park, a managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) facility in Auckland.
The Ministry of Health said there are four new cases of Covid to be reported today, including the family.
The other case is a person that travelled from the United States and arrived in New Zealand on February 11. They are staying at a MIQ facility in Wellington.
The total number of active cases in New Zealand is now 47, while the total number of confirmed cases is 1974.
PAPATOETOE SCHOOL AND SUPERMARKET SHUT, VISIT TO NEW PLYMOUTH
The daughter is a student at Papatoetoe High School, which will be closed Monday and Tuesday. A testing facility on site will be provided.
Principal Vaughan Couillault said the infected student is a Year 9 student who was only at school for one day last week, on Wednesday.
Couillault said the student stayed at home on Thursday and Friday after her mother became unwell. Last Monday was a holiday and he did not know why the student was not at school on Tuesday.
Five teachers and 28 students are considered close contacts of the infected student and all other students and staff at the school are "casual" contacts.
Couillault has notified all staff and parents by text and email this afternoon.
In addition to the school, Pak N Save Manakau will be closed temporarily as two cases made a short visit on Friday.
"This approach has been taken out of an abundance of caution," Bloomfield said.
People at the supermarket on Friday between 3.45pm to 5pm should stay home and isolate, be alert to any Covid-19 symptoms and call Healthline to arrange a test.
Over Waitangi weekend, two of the cases went to New Plymouth, with February 6-8 the time frame. However, Bloomfield said people in New Plymouth don't need to get tested unless they have symptoms.
Hipkins said the message was to follow the previously announced health and safety measures including washing your hands and signing into places using the COVID TRACER app.
"There is no such thing as no risk, so long as Covid-19 is out there," he said, and how the coronavirus is stamped out is what matters.
Bloomfield said the mother works at LSG in Mangere and the last day she attended was February 5.
He said the family did all the right things. When they developed symptoms, they self-isolated. He said the woman was not infectious when she worked there - and an investigation is under way.
Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board chairwoman Lotu Fuli urged people to follow Ministry of Health advice.
She said the only Covid testing station in the local board was at the Ōtara shopping centre, but she expected that other testing stations would be set up soon as they were during the last outbreak in South Auckland last year.
"We are concerned and we hope that people will follow all the advice," she said.
"We have been a bit slack in terms of scanning and everything else because we have been very complacent - the whole country, not just South Auckland. It is a concern because people live communally. In my own family we have three generations. So the potential for spread is very real."
ONLY GET TESTED IF YOU NEED IT - BLOOMFIELD
The Government was acting with caution, Bloomfield said.
Healthline has increased its workforce and can be contacted on 0800 611 116. In Auckland, the hours for the regional community testing centres in Northcote, Balmoral, Henderson and Otara are being extended today. The community testing centre in Wiri is also open today.
Bloomfield said it was important that the right people get tested and warned people not to get a test unless they need one.
If anyone is unwell with symptoms, he advised them not to go out.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on Friday that frontline Covid-19 workers will get vaccines first, starting on Saturday, February 20.
After those roughly 12,000 workers are vaccinated, their close family will be offered the jab.
Those most at risk of Covid-19 - people over 65 and people with underlying health conditions - are next in line, set to get the vaccine in the second quarter.
