Wellington moves to Covid Alert Level 2

Covid Response Minister Chris Hipkins says Wellington will be at Alert Level 2 till at least the end of Sunday following the visit from Sydney of a positive Covid case

23rd Jun 21, 1:25pm by David Hargreaves

The Government has moved Wellington to Covid Alert Level 2 following the visit to the capital over the weekend by someone from Sydney who tested positive to Covid when they returned home.

Covid Response Minister Chris Hipkins said Wellington would go to Level 2 from 6pm on Wednesday and be there at least till 11.59pm on Sunday. Cabinet, which met on Wednesday to discuss the issue, would meet again on Sunday to decide whether the alert level could be eased. The rest of the country remains at Level 1.

The visitor to Wellington had visited a number of locations over the weekend, with Hipkins conceding there was "extensive potential exposure".

The Level 2 restrictions are applying to the whole Wellington region, including Wairarapa and the Kapiti Coast north of Otaki. Gatherings of people will be limited to 100.

Hipkins said it was the first time the Government had moved to Level 2 to try to manage a potential Covid outbreak, but said he thought "we can break the potential chain of transmission". He said if the Government did see cases emerging outside of current known contacts of the visitor then the Cabinet would consider whether further measures were needed.

Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said the visitor to the capital works "in a healthcare setting" close to the Bondi Junction area in Sydney and one of the recent cases in Sydney had visited the healthcare facility. So, he believed the case would be proven to be linked to the Sydney outbreak.

Of the four close contacts of the visitor that have been identified, two of these live in Palmerston North and two in Tauranga. The two in Palmerston North have already tested negative, while results are being awaited for the two from Tauranga.

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39 Comments

by xingmowang | 23rd Jun 21, 2:38pm 1624415912

I really admire the fool's courage that both NZ and AUS, countries of lowest level of vaccine rates, had to open up borders to each other without any pre-screening.

just imagine what can happen to NZ as a whole next after the ski season finishing in Queenstown.

by Contrarian | 24th Jun 21, 1:21pm 1624497664

A lesson for the Government here. Speed up and get everyone vaccinated before opening the bubble again.

by Squishy | 23rd Jun 21, 2:58pm 1624417133

How is our vaccination program comming along? I'm very much looking forwards to a holiday somewhere nice. Also it would be nice to not have to lock down every time someone catches a dose of WuFlu.

by kpnuts | 23rd Jun 21, 4:44pm 1624423480

less than 8% of our population has had both doses -- yes under 8% - which is pathetic given that we have had all the advantages of being Covid free and not had the pressure that having significant numbers of cases and hospitalisation brings -- remember last year we were promised we had secured three times the number of doses required to vaccinate the entire population! Lots of nice places at home to visit !

by fat pat | 24th Jun 21, 6:09am 1624471751

What percentage of our population are sick, elderly, obese, or immunocompromised? Becaue that's the percentage that actually should be vaccinated.

by Squishy | 24th Jun 21, 6:06am 1624471618

When the UK hit about half of the adult population fully vaccinated deaths stopped correlating with cases, so that would appear to be the first tipping point. The next after that is getting to that three quarters of adults level the epidemiologists say will stop large outbreaks. Finally getting to where everyone who wants a vaccine has had the opportunity to have one so we can resume travel without quarantine.

by fat pat | 24th Jun 21, 9:34am 1624484068

I think you’re drawing a pretty long bow with that correlation/causation inference. There are multiple variables involved, and other countries don’t show the same correlation. Moreover, the cause of death data is dodgy, if that’s what you’re relying on. Here are some problems that I have with widespread vaccination. Firstly; the vaccine only provides non-sterilising immunity ie. vaccinated people still harbor the virus and pass it on but they don’t get sick. This is dangerous because under certain circumstances you'll get serial passage of the virus through the vaccinated population thereby putting selection pressure on the virus to create more virulent subtypes. Secondly; natural immunity is likely to be superior to vaccinated immunity which itself is based on a very narrow antigen, namely the 2020 version of COVID’s spike protein. Giving young people who don’t need it the vaccine may deprive them of the chance to build up superior and long lasting immunity of their own. Thirdly; there are other powerful tools in the toolbox to prevent covid death, chief among them ivermectin, vitamin D and zinc. By ignoring the other tools we will certainly get a subpar outcome compared to what we could have achieved.

by Belle | 24th Jun 21, 9:11am 1624482674

Well said Fat Pat. The simple question that bounces around my head constantly is this. Why are our media, politicians and wealthy in cohoots to scare our whole human population into taking onboard our bodies a wholly understudied experimental jab that is showing in latest studies to be dangerous in many ways to the human body?
Because they are working as one. Between the three, money media and pollies we are not being allowed to discuss the negatives of this jab, only the pros and that is not right. Our bodies, our health, we need to know the truth. 'The vaccine is safe' brigade is not conning the average Brit anymore. Go into the comments section on the likes of the Daily Mail and they understand this is not a simple case of pandemic and world saving vaccine. Something else is happening, what it is, is speculated about but this is not about public health.

by dcnbwz | 24th Jun 21, 9:24am 1624483470

Go into the comments of the Daily Mail? Says it all. Covid denial is not welcome here.

by Belle | 24th Jun 21, 9:53am 1624485211

See what I mean, you just cant discuss other options, ideas. I was here, one of the first, saying close borders. I was told I was an idiot. Thats alright, I dont mind being ahead of the pack and being scorned.

by dcnbwz | 24th Jun 21, 10:46am 1624488396

Closing the borders is definitely a good move

by Belle | 24th Jun 21, 11:53am 1624492423

Now doctors know how to treat it I think we should move on.

by dcnbwz | 24th Jun 21, 12:20pm 1624494027

Problem is though, we don't really. There's a long way to go with this. The way to treat pandemics is rapid sharp lockdowns. The way to prevent them from happening is stop meddling with the natural environment and boundaries with the ecospheres we are encroaching on.

by Rosenstein | 24th Jun 21, 12:37pm 1624495065

I got news for you. India crushed Covid in the face using Ivermectin. Check stats from states that employed Ivermectin and those that didn't. Why don't we hear about India and the Delta Uber Gamma nunchuck strain there anymore? Ivermectin. We got this. Enough fear porn.

by dcnbwz | 24th Jun 21, 1:52pm 1624499563

Why don't we hear about that apart from you and Fat Pat? Interesting.

by theoutlawtorn | 24th Jun 21, 10:01pm 1624528882

We don't hear anything outside of the "institutional narrative" in this country. Do you think Stuff or the New Zealand Herald are going to start publishing in-depth and researched pieces on anything other than a vaccine based solution? There are so far up their own virtue-signalling, debunking misinformation for the "safety and good of the people - please give us money", arses, that they couldn't see a different angle if it smacked them square in the gonads.

I've been playing in the Ivermectin rabbit hole for a few months now and sometimes it is truly exhausting - the censorship (on almost all media platforms) is breathtaking and sometimes it is extremely difficult to know who to believe. I would like to point people to the recently published, peer-reviewed meta-analysis on Ivermectin by Byrant et al, which they can use to formulate their own opinion. Also interesting to note that Oxford is now looking to study the effectiveness of the drug.

Until very recently, there was similar censorship (on most social media platforms), dismissal, labeling and name calling of anybody who suggested that the virus had escaped from the lab - "the lab leak hypothesis". Suddenly, Facebook does an about turn and decides that it will no longer censor such content, even though no new evidence was presented that materially changed the situation. The only way this topic has made it though the walls is that a few brave and dedicated people stuck their heads over the parapets and screamed for long enough to finally be heard. And they would have taken a barrage of excrement from all directions in doing so. I hadn't seen any kind of article from the New Zealand media re-igniting the lab-leak hypothesis and what it all means but I just searched and found this on Stuff, Covid-19 lab-leak hypothesis is plausible because accidents happen. I should know. It's just one piece and it's not even from Stuff, it's from The Conversation, so that gives a hint at the credibility of our main media outlets. This is why you don't hear anything about Ivermectin - most "journalists" in this country have no courage.

I didn't realise how much movement there has been on the lab leak hypothesis in the last few weeks. As I mentioned, there has been so little coverage of it in New Zealand. I just happened across a number of YouTube clips this evening that have blown me away. I have particularly enjoyed watching Fauci get grilled by the senate. If anybody is interested in this topic, this is a great place to start. Anyway, the point is this: major intuitions have spent the better part of 12 months vilifying anybody out there who dared go against the narrative regarding the origins of Covid-19 and they have been caught out. They have lied and deliberately misled us. They should not be trusted. I suspect the tactics around the lab leak are being employed around Ivermectin and that is exactly why nobody has been able to get their message through. Things are changing though, so we'll see what happens.

Edit: Spelling

by dcnbwz | 24th Jun 21, 2:11pm 1624500698

theguardian.com/australia-news/ng-interactive/2021/mar/11/anatomy-of-a-conspiracy-theory-how-misinformation-travels-on-facebook

by Rosenstein | 24th Jun 21, 5:17pm 1624511861

Science based.

https://opentheword.org/2021/05/21/is-ivermectin-turning-the-covid-tide…

by dcnbwz | 24th Jun 21, 5:42pm 1624513340

No, it's not.

by fat pat | 24th Jun 21, 6:17pm 1624515454

Hmm thought provoking rebuttal. Sort of like this https://youtu.be/3yX_1gJ_51M

by Contrarian | 24th Jun 21, 1:22pm 1624497770

The US has done a great job, 43 % fully vaccinated, 50% got the first dose. Total population about 320 million.
We need only about 15 million doses. Should have got them in 2 shipments and got the jabs done with already.

by Kate | 23rd Jun 21, 3:27pm 1624418845

Sounds like the Delta variant is a whole new ball game. But then that's just what viruses do to remain relevant. What a mess.

by Carlos67 | 23rd Jun 21, 3:55pm 1624420528

We should hope its not the Delta variant as it sounds like a game changer, not one for the better.

by Squishy | 24th Jun 21, 6:13am 1624471980

Judging from UK data it looks like the Indian Delta variant is more transmissible but no more deadly. It does reinforce the need for a ramp-up in vaccinations however, we are still only in the very early stages of the vaccination program. We've been very lucky so far but I'd like to think not complacent about the risk of a slow vaccine rollout. Every day counts.

by Contrarian | 24th Jun 21, 1:25pm 1624497942

Hope the Corona virus is over engineering itself and will kill itself soon.

by Rosenstein | 23rd Jun 21, 3:35pm 1624419359

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being "meh" and 10 being "Save me Lord Bloomfield", just tell me what I should feel and I'll do that.

Also include to nearest cubic metre how much booze, refined carbs and ciggies I should stack. I don't want to go out and get sick.

by kiwi_overseas | 23rd Jun 21, 4:32pm 1624422767

Absurd.

The government should be shutting the border to an Australian state the day a covid19 case is notified in that state.
Ideally the other Australian states would do the same.

The way the borders are currently being operated means of one of these covid19 episodes is going to get out of control and covid19 will be back in NZ.

by Trude | 23rd Jun 21, 5:29pm 1624426170

Just listened to the press conference of Chris Hipkins and Ashley Bloomfield. Ashley Bloomfield said the Australian tourist had received the first COVID-19 vaccine dose 10 weeks prior, which makes me assume it was the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. I was surprised none of the journalists followed-up on that. Would be interesting to know whether there is any data that having the first vaccine affects the seriousness of the disease or its transmissibility.

by Squishy | 24th Jun 21, 6:15am 1624472133

Have a look in the BMJ. I think they concluded that the first dose did reduce mortality. Not sure about transmission with a single shot, the Israelis recorded data suggesting both shots would reduce transmission.

by Pragmatist | 23rd Jun 21, 5:50pm 1624427434

My partner was in Wellington over the weekend, she also got her second dose of vaccine on Monday, Not feeling so hot today so has trundled off for a test as a precaution. Should i be stocking up on TP?

by Squishy | 24th Jun 21, 6:16am 1624472188

Absolutely, you'll want to pass along assets to your children if is Covid-19.

by Carlos67 | 23rd Jun 21, 9:46pm 1624441567

Well the Covid news just keeps getting worse. News out of India there is another variant even worse than Delta they are now calling Delta Plus. Unfortunately it looks like we are not going to get ahead of this as the longer its left to run rampant the more mutations your going to get. We simply cannot move fast enough now on a global scale, to many people to vaccinate. This only needs to turn into something that the current vaccines do not work on or have a low efficacy and its back to square one.

by Chris-M | 23rd Jun 21, 10:23pm 1624443795

So what was the benefit of opening a bubble with Australia before we were all vaccinated?
What will Wellingtons lock down cost?
Was it worth it?
Why are we allowing un-vaccinated Australians into the country without quarantine?
Was any of this not predictable?

by ikimpaul | 24th Jun 21, 8:28am 1624480121

Why do we assume this person is an Australian - the only thing we know is he came from Australia and went back to Australia , but given his close contacts were from Palmerston North and Tauranga- it actually sounds like a kiwi living in Australia back for the weekend.

Secondly he was partially vaccinated- the better question is why is more of NZ not vaccinated.

by Rosenstein | 24th Jun 21, 8:44am 1624481061

PCR cycle count of 35 means about as much as a positive test from that kid in Stewart Island which they shelved pretty quickly as a false positive. How many false positives have we had?

by dcnbwz | 24th Jun 21, 9:26am 1624483586

The better question is why so many people pushed for a bubble when clearly both countries are just running on luck.

by Just a farmer | 23rd Jun 21, 10:31pm 1624444306

This is why I take all the forecasts about GDP soaring and interest rates climbing with a bit if scepticism. We are only one good outbreak away from tanking the economy at any moment so I would hardly say that future growth is locked in.

by Belle | 24th Jun 21, 9:20am 1624483258

We have turned into a bunch of pansies. How many have come into the country with Delta, or any other variant? How many have died as a result? How many taken to hospital? SFA. Has anyone actually died of covid in NZ in the last year? Surely some of those travellers must have died? Yes....no? What the hell are we afraid of.

by Contrarian | 24th Jun 21, 1:19pm 1624497596

A lesson for the Government here. Speed up and get everyone vaccinated before opening the bubble again.