Close to 1500 exposed after measles case confirmed at Rotorua's Skyline

A photo of Rotorua from Skyline back in 2010. Photo / File

Close to 1500 people may have been exposed to measles following a confirmed case at Skyline's Stratosfare restaurant.

The popular Rotorua tourist spot was alerted by Toi Te Ora Public Health yesterday that a staff member had tested positive for the measles virus.

The person was in contact with other staff and customers in their Stratosfare Restaurant on November 16 and 18.

A Skyline spokesperson said they were aware of approximately 1300 visitors who passed through the restaurant over Saturday and Monday and 112 staff.

Staff who had been potentially exposed to the virus had been identified and asked to provide documentation of their immunisation status or be tested, a spokesperson said.

Staff flagged as possibly infected would be put into isolation from tomorrow, while others would remain off work until they could provide proof of immunity.

Skyline will have the testing team on-site today with results available within two working days.

The Stratosfare Restaurant booking system gave contact details for the diners who booked online on both nights and the Toi Te Ora team were working through contacting each person.

Medical officer of health Dr Phil Shoemack said the team had contacted people who had dined at the restaurant to let them know and provide advice.

The customers at the restaurant were sitting at low-risk as they were not in close contact with the infected, he said.

However, staff had been marked at high-risk as they would have been near the person for a longer period of time.

He said people born before 1969 or who had been immunised were fine to carry on as normal.

Anyone who may have been susceptible would need to contact their GP, he said.

In the Bay of Plenty and Lakes district, five new cases had been identified in the last two weeks.

Shoemack said in total there had been 71 confirmed cases in the area, 43 in the Bay of Plenty and 28 in the Lakes District.

At the start of November 1962 measles cases had been confirmed nationwide, including 1584 in the Auckland region.

A new joint Bay of Plenty and Lakes health strategic plan to combat the outbreak had been rolled out earlier this month to allow children aged 5 to 15 years to be vaccinated.

Measles symptoms include a fever, runny nose, sore red eyes and cough, followed a few days later by a rash usually starting on the face before moving down the body.

If you think you or someone in your family may have measles, please stay at home and phone your doctor to alert them of your symptoms and allow them to make arrangements to assess you safely and without infecting other people.

Please do not just turn up to your GP, after hours or emergency department without first phoning ahead as you could potentially spread the virus to others. Alternatively, call Healthline on 0800 611 116 for advice.

For more information about measles go to:

Toi Te Ora Public Health website: www.toiteora.govt.nz/measles

Immunisation Advisory Centre: 0800 IMMUNE (466 863) or www.immune.org.nz

Ministry of Health 2019 measles outbreak information: www.health.govt.nz/your-health/conditions-and-treatments/diseases-and-illnesses/measles/2019-measles-outbreak-information