August 18, 2020
Covid catches hotel staffer
A maintenance worker at an isolation hotel in Auckland has tested positive for COVID-19.
Director General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says they worked on rooms at the Rydges Hotel between guests and after the rooms had undergone full disinfection.
The genome of the infection is not linked to the other community outbreak, but was close to that of a returnee from the United States who tested positive on July 31.
Dr Bloomfield says the case was picked up as part of the process of testing everyone working at the border, with the test done last Thursday.
There were 12 other new cases confirmed today, all linked to the south Auckland cluster.
There are now 98 people linked to that cluster who have been moved into a quarantine facility, including 44 people with COVID-19 and the balance being family members.
There are six cases in hospital, two in Auckland and four in Middlemore, but none are in ICU.
Health Minister Chris Hipkins says testing of all workers at the border or in isolation and quarantine facilities is now close to complete.
At the Ports of Auckland, that will involve testing 5000 staff from 8000 organisations who have accessed the port, with about half the people tested so far.
He says family and contacts of the Rydges case have been tested and none has shown up positive.
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