Covid 19 Delta outbreak: Positive case confirmed in Masterton

A positive case of Covid-19 has been recorded in Wairarapa. Photo / Sylvie Whinray

A positive case of Covid-19 has been recorded in the Wairarapa town of Masterton this morning, 100km north of the capital.

The case was confirmed in the Government's 1pm case update, but was not included in the 173 cases officially recorded on Monday, as the result was received after 9am.

Health officials believed the case to be in the early stages of their infection, and were carrying out interviews with the person today to identify any close contacts and exposure events.

It follows news over the weekend that a Covid positive person had visited Wairarapa, leading to locations of interest listed in Masterton on Saturday for November 6 and 7.

Masterton Mayor Lyn Patterson said she was not yet aware of specifics about the positive case.

"I'm only aware that we have a positive case in Masterton and of course that's never good news," she said.

However, she said the Masterton community knew the rules and she was confident they would follow them.

"If people haven't been vaccinated and are able to get vaccinated, please get vaccinated," she said.

"That's the way we can minimise the risk for everybody in our community."

"We know the rules, we know what we need to do - wear a mask, social distancing, sanitise, contact tracing – so just encouraging everyone to follow those rules."

Eighty-nine per cent of the eligible population in Wairarapa has received one dose of the vaccine, with 78 per cent fully vaccinated.