NZ cases lock down virus-free Cook Islands

The Cook Islands has gone into lockdown in response to the latest community cases of Covid-19 in Auckland.

The nation – one of only 14 countries in the world, and nine in the Pacific, to remain virus-free – was put into its first lockdown at the weekend, after Auckland was pushed into a week-long alert level 3 lockdown.

The Cook Islands Government ordered all bars and restaurants to close on Saturday (Cook Islands time), cancelled all sports events and large gatherings, asked people to stay indoors, and ordered people to refrain from singing in churches, and social distance.

Experts said the Cook Islands would always be affected by New Zealand’s volatile coronavirus status but a quick roll-out of the vaccine would help and strengthen plans for two-way travel.

All incoming flights from New Zealand have been put on hold, the third time its government had done so since a one-way travel bubble opened in January.

Local authorities worked quickly to track down 135 recent returnees for Covid-19 tests after New Zealand announced a 21-year-old man with the virus had visited multiple places in Auckland while infectious.

Pacific health expert Dr Colin Tukuitonga said there would always be a cause for concern when it came to New Zealand and its island neighbours. ‘‘It is unavoidable, the borders cannot be completely shut down, there has to be some travel.’’

Tukuitonga was in Rarotonga recently assessing its health structure and how New Zealand could help make a two-way quarantinefree travel as safe as possible. He said there was always room for improvement in its contact tracing, testing and treatment, but both governments already had checks in place to minimise spread, like mandatory Covid-19 free results 96 hours before travel and strict overnight-isolation for flight crews.

‘‘It will never be full proof and the risk will never be zero – you can see that in Auckland with a demanding regime, but slips happen.’’

Former adviser to the Cook Islands government and Wellington resident, Thomas Taruronga, said the vaccination programme in the Cook Islands would play a huge role in keeping people safe.

‘‘It is really important for Cooks to understand that it will always be a response to whatever is happening here. The Cook Islands Government has been clear in this result, which has led to its fluid response, instead of setting clear and definite dates for a bubble,’’ he said.