News
Todays Covid-19 cases update from the Southern DHB and Ministry of Health recorded a jump in confirmed cases and clusters* related to a wedding in Bluff and The World Hereford Conference in Queenstown. *(more about clusters below)
Ministry of Health has been contacting wedding guests, many from outside Southland and participants of the Queenstown event.
Several members of staff from the Invercargill City Council have received positive test results for COVID-19, according to ICC chief executive Clare Hadley. The announcement came after 61 new cases were confirmed in New Zealand today, bringing the total to 708 on day 7 of the alert level 4 lockdown. Twenty-two of those were from a wedding in Bluff.
Members of staff who tested positive are typically based at the Civic Administration Building, and anyone who may have been a close contact would be contacted by their managers and team leaders.
See all What’s On Invers coverage of Covid-19
The total of cases with Covid-19 in the Southern DHB is 108 with 27 in the Clutha/Southland region. Southland now includes Gore, Invercargill (18) Clutha (3).
UPDATE: New cases
The Ministry of Health announced 10 new COVID-19 cases in the Southern region today. This brings the region’s total to 108 as of 8am this morning. Confirmed and probable cases are combined for this and future totals, to match Ministry case reporting.
Please note that Southern DHB Territorial Authority (TA) totals can change slightly from day to day. Cases are recorded in the TA where they are tested but might be reallocated to a new location if the patient resides somewhere else.
Significant clusters in New Zealand
As at 1 April 2020
The Ministry of Health is now classifying clusters as having more than 10 cases. All clusters are being investigated by public health officials. These figures include confirmed and probable cases. We are working to provide appropriate information on clusters.
| Clusters under investigation | Location | Total to date | New in last 24 hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marist College | Auckland | 50 | 2 |
| A bar | Matamata | 32 | 9 |
| World Hereford Conference | Queenstown | 27 | 3 |
| A wedding | Southland | 22 | 14 |
| Group travel to US | Wellington | 15 | -1* |
| A rest home | Hamilton | 14 | 0 |
| A wedding | Wellington | 11 | 0 |
* Decrease in case count is due to probable case being downgraded to suspect.
A cluster is where there are a group of COVID-19 cases who are linked together because they have been in the same place together.
There are some clusters of cases of COVID-19 in New Zealand. Most of these clusters have a link to someone or several people who have travelled overseas recently.
We know transmission can happen more quickly where people gather together. This is why it’s important for everyone to practice physical distancing.
Public health staff quickly follow up confirmed cases as soon as they are identified. They also work to contain clusters and prevent the disease spreading any further.