Hotel guests stunned

Guests at a Wellington accommodation complex were stunned to discover they were sharing their hotel with film workers direct from a Covid-19 hot spot.

Management of the QT Hotel say the workers, direct from Los Angeles, are completely segregated from other guests. But one of those guests told Stuff that she walked directly through a crowd of them unaware they had just arrived from the United States, the country with the world’s highest number of Covid-19 cases.

Los Angeles is one of the worstaffected places in the US, with a tally of 53,746 confirmed cases and 2339 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.

On Sunday, Stuff revealed that Economic Development Minister Phil Twyford had allowed 56 film workers past New Zealand’s closed borders. It is understood these people were working on the Avatar sequels and another yet-tobe-announced project.

Their Air New Zealand Dreamliner charter plane, direct from Los Angeles, touched down in Wellington before dawn on Sunday and the film workers were taken to the QT Hotel to begin a twoweek quarantine.

QT Wellington general manager Ian Charlton said: ‘‘We have isolated them in the hotel side of QT Wellington, which is completely separate from our other guests that are staying in our QT apartments. As per Ministry of Health requirements, guests selfisolating are confined to their rooms, with room service being left outside their doors.

‘‘We would never put any of our guests, staff or the public staying or dining at QT at risk and . . . we are going beyond what is required by the Ministry of Heath guidelines related to Covid-19.’’

Those staying in the adjoining apartment complex, which has access to a shared entrance, say