Warning over measles case flight
Travellers on the same flight as a measles case may be at risk
Te Whatu Ora has issued an urgent call for travellers on the same international or domestic flight as a recent measles case to check their locations of interest information as they may be at risk.
It comes after the 13th measles case this year was yesterday confirmed in Taranaki, following a nationwide health alert after cases spread from a Northlander last month.
Te Whatu Ora confirmed the person infected had just returned to New Zealand from abroad.
The latest measles locations of interest are;
■ Air New Zealand Flight NZ29 Houston to Auckland- Sunday 29th October to Monday 30th October (NZT 2:55pm to 5:30am)
■ Auckland International Airport Arrival Area- Monday 30th October (5:30am to 9:00am)
■ Auckland Airport Shuttle Service (from international arrival terminal to domestic departure terminal) Monday 30th October (7:00am to 8:30am)
■ Auckland Domestic Airport Departure Area- Monday 30th October (7:30am to 9:30am)
■ Air New Zealand Flight NZ5035 Auckland to New Plymouth- Monday 30th October (8:05am to 8:55am)
■ New Plymouth Airport Arrival Area- Monday 30th October (9:00am to 11:00am)
“People who travelled on those two flights and sat in seats near the infectious person are considered at particularly high risk, and need to contact Healthline urgently if they meet the criteria outlined in the locations of interest information,” a Te Whatu Ora spokesperson said.
Any non-immune close contacts from these flights will need to quarantine from Sunday (for the international flight) or Monday (for the domestic flight).
National Public Health Service (NPHS) clinical lead William Rainger said: “While most close contacts from the flights have already been contacted by NPHS staff, there are still a number of people we haven’t been able to reach and are very keen to hear from”.
He said this was to ensure that close contacts who need to quarantine are provided with the information and support they need – and to ensure that any infection doesn’t spread further.
“Young babies, pregnant people and people with conditions that affect their immune system can become very unwell with measles.
“If you are a close contact in any of these groups, please get in touch with Healthline on 0800 611 116 as soon as possible so that further free advice and public health support can be provided,” Rainger said.
People are considered immune to measles if they have received two doses of measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine, have had measles previously, or lived in New Zealand before 1969.