New Zealand was COVID-free for more than 100 days, not until authorities have found four new cases of the novel coronavirus on August 11. Nonetheless, New Zealand should serve as a model to the whole world on dealing with the pandemic.
A few hours after the new cases of COVID-19 was confirmed, Prime Minister Jacinda Arden immediately placed the entire city of Auckland in lockdown. This immediate response by their government is not the only notable thing as health experts in the country think their new cases were imported from the frozen food packaging.
It has been known already that coronavirus can stay on surfaces and can withstand refrigerated environments. As of now, the country's health officials are testing the surfaces at a store where one of the new cases works.
New Zealand Government Gives COVID-19 Update As Restrictions Return Following New Coronavirus Cases: WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - AUGUST 13: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks with media at a COVID-19 briefing on August 13, 2020, in Wellington, New Zealand. COVID-19 restrictions have been reintroduced across New Zealand after four new COVID-19 cases were diagnosed in Auckland. Auckland has been placed in Level 3 lockdown for three days from Wednesday 12 August, with all residents working from home unless they are essential workers and all schools and childcare centers are closed. The rest of New Zealand has returned to Level 2 restrictions. The new cases are all in the same family, with health authorities working to trace back the source of the infection.
New Cases Came from Imported Contaminated Food Packaging
The 1.7 million people of Auckland are now back in lockdown days after four members of a family were confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus.
The health officers are baffled by the resurgence of the virus as there was no community transmission of COVID-19 in more than three months.
Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said that they are working hard to put the pieces of the puzzle together in how the family got infected.
But they think that the virus was imported by freight and has surface testing underway to test the store's surface where the man of the family worked. The cold store is refrigerated storage owned by Americold Realty Trust based in Atlanta, Georgia.
It is still not clear whether the man got the infection there or how the virus even got in the cold store. The virus is known to survive cool temperatures and so inside a refrigerated environment for quite some time, says Bloomfield.
When China reported new cases of the coronavirus, it was suspected to have come from imported salmon, prompting a panic that affected the fish industry. As it turns out, the fish did not contain the virus.
However, the new cases in New Zealand seem to point to food packaging. Although there are no confirmed cases yet of getting the infection from food or food packaging, the World Health Organization says it is possible.
FILE PHOTO: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks during a joint press conference held with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison at Admiralty House in Sydney, Australia
READ: New Zealand Has Completed 100 Days Free From Coronavirus
New Zealand's Next Step
Once again, the New Zealand government has acted swiftly, implementing lockdown in Auckland four hours after the confirmed cases. People are required to stay at home and can only leave for essential trips.
The police have already set roadblocks to prevent citizens from leaving the city, and supermarkets have begun rationing the sale of their items.
As a result of the lockdown, queues were formed at COVID-19 testing centers, and contact tracers have already identified 200 people as contacts of the family. Health officials are now ready to test tens of thousands more people.
Furthermore, the rest of New Zealand will be under level 2 restrictions, which is looser than the level 3 in Auckland. These restrictions will stay in place until Friday.
PM Ardern will now decide how to handle the upcoming elections, and her cabinet will decide on the next steps to take for the restrictions on Friday.
READ MORE: Coronavirus Reemerges in New Zealand, Ending Its 102-Day Streak
Check out more news and information on COVID-19 on Science Times.
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