Auckland Mayor Phil Goff has issued a warning for those living in the city not to “stuff up” this weekend at Alert Level 2.
New Zealand’s largest city moved to Alert Level 3 on Monday after the revelation a day earlier of a new Covid-19 cluster in the community, but restrictions were brought down a level yesterday despite another three new community cases being announced.
Jacinda Ardern on Wednesday pointed out the cluster was a “small chain of transmission, which is manageable via testing procedures”.
Goff today, however, urged vigilance — issuing a statement telling Aucklanders to “take care” over the weekend in order to keep the virus in check.
“Like all Aucklanders, I am also really keen to get back to Level 1 as soon as possible and stay there. But all of that depends on how well we follow the rules this weekend. We’re almost there so let’s not stuff it up now,” he said.
“While it might feel like we are past the worst of the Covid-19 community spread, we are not fully out of the woods yet.
“Aucklanders need to remember we are still in Level 2 over the weekend – no matter how good the weather is,” Goff said.
“I know the temptation will be to make the most of the last days of summer but please remember gathering sizes are still limited. Even if you are at a gathering of less than a 100 people, you must maintain social distancing.”
Crowd rules under Level 2 mean up to 100 people can gather at events, including funerals and tangihanga.
The same maximum number is allowed in bars and other hospitality venues, but different groups of customers must be separated, seated and served by a single person.
Social distancing of two metres is required in places like supermarkets and retail stores.
The alert level will be reviewed on Monday for Auckland. The rest of the country moved to Level 1 yesterday, after three days in Level 2.
The current Auckland community cluster remains at six with mass testing still underway.
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