Auckland to go into three-day lockdown after three Covid cases discovered in New Zealand

MPs Return To Parliament For First Cabinet Meeting Of 2021
Jacinda Ardern
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Leah Sinclair14 February 2021

New Zealand’s largest city, Auckland, will go into a three-day lockdown beginning just before midnight on Sunday following the discovery of three cases of coronavirus.

It means the city’s 1.4 million people will be expected to stay at home, except for essential shopping and essential work, while the rest of the country will face slightly less stringent restrictions as a precaution.

With a population of 5 million, New Zealand has reported a total of just over 2,300 cases and 25 deaths since the pandemic started.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced the news after a meeting with top lawmakers in the Cabinet.

Ms Ardern said the government had decided to take a ‘cautious’ approach until they could find out more about the unexplained Covid-19 cases, including whether the infections are of the more contagious variants.

“I’m asking New Zealanders to continue to be strong and to be kind,” Ms Ardern said at a press conference.

“I know we all feel the same way when this happens. We all get that sense of ‘not again.’ But remember, we have been here before and that means we know how to get out of this again, and that is together.”

The lockdown is the first in New Zealand in six months.

The latest cases are an Auckland mother, father and daughter from the suburb of Papatoetoe.

Officials said the mother works at a catering company which does laundry for airlines and they are investigating whether there is a link to infected passengers.

Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said: "We are gathering all of the facts as quickly as we can, and the system that served us so well in the past is really gearing up to do so again."

Police will set up roadblocks at the border of the Auckland region from Monday morning, according to the New Zealand Herald.

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