Australia’s COVID-19 Spike a Reminder NZ ‘Not Immune’ to a Second Wave: Ardern

Aresurgence of COVID-19 in Australia is a sombre reminder of the ongoing threat coronavirus poses to New Zealand, the Prime Minister says.

After seemingly getting its COVID-19 outbreak under control, Australia’s daily cases have been building over the last week - and on Monday it recorded 81 new cases, less than three weeks after recording just two earlier in the month.

The majority of these cases are in the southern state of Victoria, which has now entered its second period of lockdown and closed its borders in response to the spike.

Speaking at a press conference, Jacinda Ardern told media our goal now is “to preserve those freedoms” we enjoy at alert level 1. And Ms Ardern says while we’ve recorded two consecutive days with no new coronavirus cases, what’s happened in Victoria is a warning to New Zealanders not to get complacent. “While we have low cases and days with zero, Victoria too was in a position of low cases and days with zero just three weeks ago,” she said.

“In the past 24 hours it has had 64 new cases, and today moves to local lockdown across 36 suburbs and has closed its borders. It is an example of how easily the virus can take hold again and why vigilance is so important.

“It’s a good reminder that New Zealand is a safe haven in a dangerous world. But we are not immune to what is happening in the rest of the world, and we will all battle this global pandemic for some time to come.”