Two New Zealand Defence Force staff are at the centre of New Zealand's latest Covid-19 community outbreak.
The first person to fall ill was a service person working at Auckland's Jet Park quarantine facility.
They were confirmed to have been infected on Friday.
The second person is a civilian NZDF employee who met the first person in Auckland on Wednesday.
They were identified as a close contact and subsequently tested positive.
The civilian is based at NZDF headquarters in Wellington, and flew back to the capital on Air NZ flight 457 on Thursday evening.
People who sat near them have been asked to get tested and self-isolate, as have their household contacts.
Around 1300 people work at Defence House, which is closed for deep cleaning, and staff are working from home.
The partner of a man who sat near the infected person says they have received conflicting advice from the Ministry of Health.
“We take the health and safety of our military personnel and civilian employees very seriously, and we will be doing everything we can to keep people informed and manage the situation,” Vice Chief of Defence Force Air Vice-Marshal (AVM) Tony Davies said in a statement.
“We are also in contact with the Ministry of Health, and are abiding by their protocols.
“We are doing everything we can to keep our people and their families and whānau safe while we undertake these important roles that directly contribute to the protection and security of New Zealand and New Zealanders.”
“Our efforts have directly contributed to the AOG [All-of-Government] effort that has enabled so many New Zealanders to return home to Aotearoa via the managed isolation and quarantine process. Our people must continue to support the AOG response to Covid-19, and we will continue to do all that we can to keep them safe.”
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