People who work in downtown Auckland are being asked to do their jobs from home if possible tomorrow, health bosses say.
And Auckland mayor Phil Goff has expressed his frustration and disappointment at the workplace stance which led to an unwell woman - who was waiting for the results of her Covid-19 test - being told to still come to work, but wear a mask.
That staff member of a High St store is now in quarantine after testing positive.
Authorities revealed this afternoon the new Covid-19 community case dealt with customers while working at a central Auckland store.
Director of public health Caroline McElnay said there has been a detailed interview with the confirmed case.
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— Phil Goff (@phil_goff) November 12, 2020
Please avoid coming into the city centre/downtown area tomorrow. If you have to come in, please wear a mask and socially distance.
This is a precautionary measure.
The woman is in a customer-facing role in their job at A-Z Collections on Auckland's High St, McElnay said.
She called in sick to work after being told to isolate but after a conversation with her manager went to work and wore a mask.
The woman's three close contacts are colleagues and friends and are being moved to a border hotel. They are all reported to be feeling well.
The woman also took a number of "very short" Uber trips to work and drivers are being contacted and asked to isolate.
Goff told Newstalk ZB he was disappointed at what had occurred, saying it was a big problem and the worst thing that could've happened.
He said Auckland could beat Covid again, but Aucklanders needed to follow the rules, and work collectively.
The mayor also told RNZ "it is not great news".
"The worst thing that happened in this case is the woman having been told to isolate, then told by a store manager to come into work. That is frankly unbelievable.
"I just can not understand that. It defies common sense. There is a lesson in that, and you think that is a lesson people didn't need to learn."
The woman's movements have been released.
These include:
• Smith and Caughey's on Queen St on Saturday November 7 (3.50–6pm).
• Red Pig Restaurant, Kitchener St on Saturday November 7 (6-8.30pm)
• Takeaways from Starbucks Queen St and from Sunnytown Restaurant on Sunday November 8 (11.30-11.45am).
• Takeaways from The Gateau House on Queen St on Sunday November 8 (6.40-6.50pm)
• Takeaways from Starbucks Queen St and from Sunnytown Restaurant, Lorne St, on Monday November 9 (11.31-11.40am)
Anyone in the Auckland area and anyone throughout New Zealand should stay home if they have cold and flu symptoms, she said.
Out of an abundance of caution, Aucklanders who work in the CBD should work from home tomorrow, said McElnay, and if you have to go into that area you should wear a mask.
The woman's swab is being processed overnight for genome sequencing and has been received by ESR.
An incident involving a fire alarm - where people in managed isolation mingled with apartment guests where the woman lives - is not likely to be a source of infection for the case as it was at 8pm on Monday night.
Universities have begun moving classes and exams online.
AUT has told students this evening to stay away from its City Campus tomorrow.
"In line with the Government's advice, please stay away from the City Campus. If you do need to be in the CBD, wearing a mask is advised."
"Student services will still be available online and the South Campus and North Campus will both operate as usual," the university said in a statement.
The Student Medical Centre on the City Campus will be available.
The University of Auckland has told students that all exams scheduled across its City, Grafton, Newmarket and Epsom campuses will be held online tomorrow instead.
Staff and students across all of its Auckland campuses have been asked to work and study from home tomorrow, where possible.
Covid response minister Chris Hipkins said the situation was different for the last outbreak when Auckland went back into alert level 3 - but said that wasn't to say they wouldn't review alert levels tomorrow.
He said it appeared the case was currently contained.
Hipkins asked that employers should "go out of their way" to make sure their staff could stay home if sick. He said it was disappointing the woman's manager told her to go to work despite the health official's advice to her to stay home.
McElnay said there was no information at this stage the woman or her contacts moved outside of the CBD.
Hipkins said he was comfortable that the guidance they were giving today was the best they could give on the information they had.
There was no danger of an "enhanced risk" outside CBD.
Hipkins, who is also Education Minister, said he was conscious it was exam season and his advice to NZQA is to continue exams as normal at this stage as he was aware exams were usually in a socially distanced setting.
Anyone with an exam tomorrow should still go until told otherwise, said Hipkins.
Hipkins said it was speculation to link the source to the woman living and working near to a managed isolation facility but it would be part of the investigation.
"We're asking people to do the right thing here."
Hipkins said there would likely be more information tomorrow.
McElnay said the test was taken quite late on Tuesday night.
Hipkins said he hoped there would be more QR scanning because it meant they could notify people quickly if they might have been exposed.
"My message to everyone is you don't know when this might come up. So keep scanning.
"The QR code keeps everyone safe."
He said "we are a very, very mobile people" so no one could assume that because the bulk of the cases were in Auckland, the rest of the country wasn't at risk.
The Government hasn't drawn a line on a map defining the bounds of the CBD but are asking employers to exercise caution.
Those who live in the CBD should minimise their movements and contacts.
Hipkins has had several conversations with the Prime Minister, who is in Wellington. If Cabinet needs to meet tomorrow, it would happen digitally.
Shutting down the heart of the city reflected the fact that we're not dealing with widespread community cases, said Hipkins.
And the measures might help stop more draconian measures, he said.
Health bosses announced at 1pm that there was a new case of Covid-19 in the community with no obvious link to travel, the border or managed isolation.
The woman, in her 20s, developed symptoms on Monday and was tested on Tuesday. The results were confirmed this morning.
The woman lives alone in a Vincent St Residences apartment, did not visit the supermarket while infectious and had limited movements around the city.
The manager of The Gateau House cake shop on Queen St said they had just been told by health officials that a woman who recently tested positive to Covid-19 had visited her cake shop on Tuesday.
However, they had not been told "too much" information as of yet.
She said apparently the woman had not spent too long in her store.
She said her staff who had been working on Tuesday would now get Covid-19 tests and stay home until they got their results.
Her cake shop could stay open in the meantime but would be undergoing a thorough clean.
"We will disinfect our area, get staff to wear masks, provide hand sanitiser and follow precautions and do our part," she said.
Manager of the Red Pig, Yeain Nam, is waiting to hear whether the restaurant can stay open.
The restaurant has a Covid-19 tracer QR code available and a sign-in book for those who don't have the app.
She says she's not sure if all customers used the app.
Last Saturday night the restaurant had between 60-80 customers, says Nam.
On busy Saturday nights, the restaurant can see up to 100 customers.
A staff member at the Sunny Town Chinese restaurant on Lorne St said she had "only just heard" that a woman who tested positive to Covid-19 had visited her restaurant.
"We are surprised," she said.
She said her restaurant had not been contacted by health authorities.
She was now set to call her manager and plan what response the restaurant would take.
But she said her staff would be looking to wear masks and potentially distance restaurant tables immediately.
Earlier this afternoon Hipkins said there was not enough information to decide whether a shift in alert levels was needed.
Officials were working behind the scenes to go back through the woman's movements to both identify contacts and find a link to the border.
Genome sequencing has also been expedited and the results are expected tomorrow afternoon - which will help show whether the case is linked to other confirmed cases.
Hipkins urged Aucklanders and the rest of New Zealand to remain calm and follow instructions, including:
• If you visited A-Z Collection at 61 High St or live in or have visited Vincent St Residences between Saturday November 7 and today to isolate and get a test.
• Isolate and get a test if you have cold or flu symptoms.
• Wear a mask on public transport, planes and in places you can't physically distance.
• Maintain good hand hygiene and sneeze etiquette.
• Scan into every place you go with the Covid Tracer app.
Black Label Barbeque is a finalist in the Monteith's Wild Food Challenge today.