Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Covid 19: District health boards prepare with mini-MIQs for infected visitors

RNZ
7 Dec, 2021 04:53 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

28 October 2021. Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins announces changes to MIQ, with stays halving from 14 to seven days, followed by isolation at home for three days. Video / Pool

By Rowan Quinn of RNZ

Just two motel units have been set aside in Queenstown for people who might need help to isolate with Covid despite tens of thousands of Aucklanders about to hit town, mayor Jim Boult says.

He is worried it will not be enough to ensure people can isolate safely while holidaying in town.

Mini-MIQs are being set up all over the country in places that do not already have them in case people cannot isolate where they live or are staying.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Queenstown Mayor Jim Boult has urged the Southern District Health Board to prepare a larger facility. Photo / James Allan, File
Queenstown Mayor Jim Boult has urged the Southern District Health Board to prepare a larger facility. Photo / James Allan, File

Boult said two motel units were clearly not enough for Queenstown.

He had asked the Southern District Health Board to get a larger facility ready, especially because it was only about 10 days before Aucklanders would start arriving in numbers.

A suite in the Sudima MIQ managed isolation hotel facility in Rotorua. Photo / Supplied, File
A suite in the Sudima MIQ managed isolation hotel facility in Rotorua. Photo / Supplied, File

Most people with Covid-19 now isolate at home if they are well enough.

But that is not always possible if their house is too crowded or if they are in their last couple of days at a campground, motel or Airbnb.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Boult said many hoteliers had contacted him, anxious about what they would do if a guest had Covid-19.

"Obviously they can't get in an aeroplane and fly back to Auckland so they need to be isolated," he said.

Tourists, particularly long locked-down Aucklanders, are expected to flood into Queenstown for the attractions such as the Shotover Jet rides. Photo / Mike Scott, File
Tourists, particularly long locked-down Aucklanders, are expected to flood into Queenstown for the attractions such as the Shotover Jet rides. Photo / Mike Scott, File

Hoteliers did not want positive cases to stay and risk exposing staff or other guests to the virus.

Southern DHB chief executive Chris Fleming told a board meeting on Tuesday that specialised accommodation in Queenstown was very limited and the board realised it would need to add more.

He was meeting Boult and business leaders on Thursday to discuss a plan.

While there is extra urgency in holiday areas, all the country's district health boards are getting mini-MIQs in place.

In Northland, the DHB has already been using a small number of facilities.

Northland DHB clinical leader for community isolation Sarah Clarke said a mixture of accommodation including motel units and old hospital housing would eventually be used.

The holidays were always a busy time for Northland and houses were often packed full with visiting friends and whānau, she said.

Ideally anyone who caught Covid-19 or who was a close contact would head home to isolate but if that could not be done safely support would be available, she said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Holidaymakers needed to play their part though.

"Please come with a plan," she said.

That could include bringing extra food or knowing how you would get it if you had to suddenly isolate and also thinking about how you could get safely home if possible, she said.

Elsewhere, most district health boards were relying on motels as quarantine facilities with back up from full MIQs for those areas near cities that had them.

Some motels would be exclusively used for Covid-19 isolation and others would simply be areas fenced off from other guests.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua Daily Post

Man admits having $20k of stolen goods in mysterious arson case

04 Jul 06:00 PM
Rotorua Daily Post

Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor

04 Jul 02:00 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Man admits having $20k of stolen goods in mysterious arson case

Man admits having $20k of stolen goods in mysterious arson case

04 Jul 06:00 PM

William Tidd tried to sell the stolen items hours after the incident.

Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor

Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor

04 Jul 02:00 AM
Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor

Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor

'Social dysfunction at its worst': Two people sentenced over Rotorua teen prostitution ring

'Social dysfunction at its worst': Two people sentenced over Rotorua teen prostitution ring

04 Jul 01:08 AM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP