Guard’s contact fumes over missed jabs
Five households hit by ‘vaccine hesitancy’
Aman required to stay home for a week claims there are at least five Auckland properties with residents in self-isolation or quarantine connected to the infected security guard.
The man, who shares a flat with a close contact of the infected Grand Millennium worker, told the Herald he was one of three in his central Auckland household under strict health orders to not go out for seven days.
His flatmate was undergoing a 14-day quarantine stint at the Jet Park Hotel.
The man said there were at least five households across the city that were in a form of lockdown because of the frontline worker’s Covid infection that was detected on Tuesday.
The Ministry of Health didn’t respond directly when asked how many people were now selfisolating as a result of the case.
“Case investigations continue. Any further relevant information should be provided in the ministry’s next update”, a ministry spokeswoman said.
So far 10 people had been identified as close contacts of the guard, who first showed signs of a sore throat four days before being tested, and all were self isolating. Five had returned negative test results, and the rest were still to be processed.
The 24-year-old guard, employed by a private contractor, had been transferred to the Auckland quarantine facility.
As of yesterday no further community or border-related infections had been detected since the guard’s positive result, including from testing of his contacts.
The man in self-isolation also told the Herald he was beyond frustrated at having to spend a week away from his workplace, where he was required in person to carry out duties.
He wanted the public to know many others had been impacted by the Grand Millennium guard’s actions.
“Myself and my friend, we have to be in quarantine. Why do we have to suffer because of one person who wasn’t vaccinated?”
The man, who is already fully vaccinated, said he was furious to learn the frontline worker was not vaccinated.
The guard was initially said to have missed two appointments due to “personal reasons”, but authorities didn’t elaborate further.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern later said the infected security guard was not vaccinated because of vaccine hesitancy.
The man in self-isolation said despite testing negative he wasn’t able to leave his home for seven days under public health orders.
“I can’t do work at home. Today I got really frustrated.”
Investigations were continuing and public health officials were carrying out scoping interviews to determine any locations of interest, the Ministry of Health said.
At this stage, there were no locations of interest to report.
The security guard is the second worker at the Grand Millennium to test positive for Covid this year.
Last month a cleaner tested positive.
Whole genome sequencing results showed she was infected with the UK variant and found to be a close match with a returnee who had stayed in the facility.
Meanwhile, Ardern is offering reassurances to those people travelling from India to New Zealand before the two-week travel exemption from India ticket comes into effect.
“They’ll have the same level of precaution and care as we do for every flight.”
She said the Government treats every international arrival as if they potentially have Covid-19.
According to Ministry of Health data from the past two weeks, 55 people who have travelled from India to New Zealand have tested positive for Covid-19 — 73 per cent of all arrivals.
“If that number of people from any country were coming in with Covid, that would give us cause to pause and look at mitigations to try and reduce that risk,” Ardern said yesterday.
This follows criticism from Green MP Golriz Ghahraman, who said on Twitter: “Our ethnic communities of South Asian origin need to know race isn’t a factor in our Covid-19 risk management.”
Ardern said the travel suspension was not country-specific.
“It is about the cases we are seeing currently from that region.”
Western Australia Premier Mark Mcgowan confirmed yesterday Kiwis will be allowed to travel to the state without undergoing quarantine when the transtasman bubble opens on April 19.
That had been in doubt after this week’s transtasman bubble announcement, given the state’s hardline border stance. Arriving Kiwis will need to get a special pass, called a G2G, by filling out a health declaration as well as undergoing health screenings at the airport.
"If that number of people from any country were coming in with Covid, that would give us cause to pause and look at mitigations to try and reduce that risk."
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern