Waikato Herald
  • Waikato Herald home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Locations

  • Hamilton
  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Matamata & Piako
  • Cambridge
  • Te Awamutu
  • Tokoroa & South Waikato
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Weather

  • Thames
  • Hamilton
  • Tokoroa
  • Taumarunui
  • 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 / Waikato News

Covid 19 coronavirus: Pullman Hotel empties out as health officials await test results from latest case

RNZ
6 Feb, 2021 08:47 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

Director of Public Health Dr Caroline McElnay said the public health risk was low but the Ministry was "scratching our heads a little" on the cases linked to the Pullman Hotel. Video / Ministry of Health

By RNZ

Health officials are awaiting the results of more tests to piece together when and how the latest Covid-19 case got the virus.

The person tested positive on their fifth day of self-isolation at home in Hamilton, after returning three negative tests during their 14 days' managed isolation at Auckland's Pullman Hotel.

It is the fifth case to be linked to the hotel and investigations are continuing.

Since late January, everyone who has completed managed isolation at the Pullman has been required to self-isolate at home for a further five days and be re-tested.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It is not yet known whether the person has one of the more infectious variants of the virus, or whether the infection is linked to the earlier cases.

Yesterday, Director of Public Health Caroline McElnay said genome sequencing would provide further information about that.

She said there was still a chance it could be a historical infection.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

More details would be released as soon as they were available, McElnay said.

Health officials have emphasised that the public health risk from the latest case is low, because they have been in self-isolation at home.

Both of the person's close contacts have tested negative.

Pullman empties out

The last 60 returnees at Auckland's Pullman Hotel are due to depart today, having completed their 14 days' managed isolation.

The hotel has not been accepting any new arrivals, as investigations continue into the Covid-19 cases linked to the facility.

All of those departing will still need to self-isolate at home for five days and be re-tested.

With the hotel empty, it will undergo a deep clean and more work will be done to try and work out how people became infected there.

The investigation into how the transmission occurred is inconclusive at this stage, McElnay said.

With no guests, McElnay said it would also be an opportunity to make changes and improvements to the hotel, if it is to be used again for managed isolation.

National wants 'common sense' changes to MIQ

National's Covid-19 response spokesman Chris Bishop said the string of cases must prompt changes to the managed isolation system.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He said overall the system had been successful, but things could be done better.

That should include separating arrivals from high-risk and low-risk countries, with those in the former group going into dedicated facilities.

Bishop said this was important given the emergence of the more infectious variants of the virus.

- RNZ

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Waikato News

Waikato Herald

McDonald’s buys $8m landmark church to turn into restaurant

Waikato Herald

'He's been made to look like a monster': Grieving Mongrel Mobster mum's heartache

Sport

All Blacks v France third test: All you need to know


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Waikato News

McDonald’s buys $8m landmark church to turn into restaurant
Waikato Herald

McDonald’s buys $8m landmark church to turn into restaurant

Maccas returns to Hamilton CBD after 30-year hiatus.

18 Jul 07:12 AM
'He's been made to look like a monster': Grieving Mongrel Mobster mum's heartache
Waikato Herald

'He's been made to look like a monster': Grieving Mongrel Mobster mum's heartache

18 Jul 06:47 AM
All Blacks v France third test: All you need to know
Sport

All Blacks v France third test: All you need to know

18 Jul 02:50 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
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
  • Waikato Herald e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Waikato Herald
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • 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
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP