September 21, 2020
COVID-19 restrictions ease after spread free week
While the rest of the country moves down to Alert Level 1 at midnight, Auckland must wait until Wednesday night to move to Level 2.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the virus seems under control as there have been no new cases linked to the Auckland cluster for seven days.
There is still a need for a cautious approach, but tests showed the outbreak had not spread beyond the city and the connected Tokoroa cases.
In Auckland social gatherings of up to 100 people will be permitted, but face coverings will still be needed on public transport and on flights in and out of the city.
Auckland has been under alert level 3 and 2.5 lockdown restrictions for more than a month.
The next alert level review is in two weeks.
There were no new cases of COVID-19 today.
Officials are still trying to identify when a man who tested positive a week after completing his 14 days in managed isolation caught the coronavirus.
Ms Ardern says it was possible he was infected on his flight from India and incubated it during those two weeks, as the genomic sequence matches that of others on the flight.
It is also possible he may have caught it a chartered flight from a Christchurch managed isolation and quarantine facility to Auckland, and close contacts are being tested and followed up.
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