August 24, 2020
Level 3 lockdown eases from Sunday as contact tracing hits gold standard
The Level 3 lockdown in Auckland has been extended four days until 11.59pm on Sunday.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says that’s based on advice from the Director General of Health, Ashley Bloomfield, about the success in getting ahead of the south Auckland cluster.
She says if the lockdown had not been imposed, the cluster would have increased exponentially.
Today there were 8 new confirmed cases, including one from overseas in managed isolation and the other seven connected to the cluster, and one probable case.
She says since the coronavirus reemerged in the community on August 12 there have been more than 100,000 tests in Auckland, and contact tracing has reached the gold standard of 80 percent of contacts traced in 48 hours.
Most of the positive cases now being found were people who were already put into isolation before symptoms emerged.
From Sunday Auckland will move down to Level 2, with shops and schools open but mass gatherings banned.
The rest of the country will stay at Level 2 because of the risks of travel between regions.
Use of masks or face coverings will be mandated on public transport from Monday.
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