Confusion in South as Covid-19 test swabs refused by labs
New testing criteria were released late on Wednesday, meaning those with symptoms but no connection to overseas travel or another coronavirus case could be tested. Dunedin North Medical Centre GP Dr Daniel Pettigrew said although he understood shifting test criteria, changes led to a waste of resources. Dr Pettigrew said that increase was reflected in his experience at the surgery yesterday. Despite reports from other regions of test kit shortages, that did not seem to be an issue in the South. Both Dr Pettigrew and GP Dr Greg White, of Cromwell Family Practice, said authorities had made "plenty" of test kits available.
Source:Otago Daily Times
April 02, 2020 15:22 UTC
Christchurch school apologises for giving students false Covid-19 tips
A Christchurch primary school has apologised for giving students false Covid-19 prevention tips such as gargling hydrogen peroxide and holding their breath. Whītau School parents received a set of "Coronavirus Facts" in a recent newsletter, advising them and to avoid ice water or drinks with ice cubes, TVNZ reported. Principal Sandra Smith said the primary school students should perform a "verification test" every morning to check if they had been infected with Covid-19. Smith also told parents that "hot drinks such as infusions, broths or simply hot water should be consumed abundantly". University of Otago infectious disease expert Dr David Murdoch told TVNZ the claims were all false.
Source:Otago Daily Times
April 02, 2020 09:33 UTC
Coronavirus: German teenager sets sights on a mercy flight
German nationals trapped in New Zealand by the coronavirus lockdown are celebrating a government announcement they will be allowed to leave the country. Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters announced details of the new framework on Thursday to allow foreign nationals to leave the country. "But it is clear that many foreign nationals travelling here do not have the resources or capability to adequately self-isolate, and wish to return home. "We have taken the time and care to develop a seriously detailed plan for the exit of foreign nationals, without endangering the lives of others." Under the managed exit plan foreign nationals returning home will be considered to be engaging in essential travel.
Source:Stuff
April 02, 2020 07:52 UTC
Hospital staff report increase in being spat on
Photo: Getty ImagesHealth staff and other essential workers are increasingly reporting being spat at by angry members of the public while trying to work during the lockdown. Unions warn this is putting them at risk of contracting Covid-19 - and puts the rest of us at risk too. Nurses Organisation kaiwhakahaere Kerri Nuku said the union was getting more and more reports of nurses being spat at by people trying to infect them - or at least frighten them. Despite reports off staff being spat on in other centres in New Zealand, there had been no incidents of this nature reported in the South, the Southern District Health Board said. It was already an anxious time for hospital staff - without the added stress of being attacked by those people they were trying to help, she said.
Source:Otago Daily Times
April 02, 2020 07:41 UTC
Court orders property developer to pay up after loan default
A property developer behind a collapsed central Christchurch project has been ordered to pay up after his company defaulted on a loan he had personally guaranteed. The High Court has ruled Andrew Fonagy must pay $850,000 plus interest to Primary Services New Zealand Ltd over a 2015 loan towards building a luxury Colombo St hotel and apartments. SUPPLIED The $20 million hotel and apartments were planned for a Colombo St site. The High Court has made previous payment orders over the loan against Fonagy's company, Colombo Projects Ltd, and his former partner on the project, Richmond Paynter, who was also a guarantor. STACY SQUIRES/STUFF Richmond Paynter was also a guarantor on the loan for the Colombo St projet.
Source:Stuff
April 02, 2020 07:30 UTC
Health Minister drives to local park to ride his mountain bike, amid coronavirus lockdown
A photograph taken of Health Minister David Clark's van at the carpark of a Dunedin mountain bike park, on Thursday April 2, a week into a full scale lockdown of New Zealand. Health Minister David Clark drove to a Dunedin park two kilometres from his home to ride a mountain bike trail, as New Zealand marked a week in lockdown. I was horrified to see the minister's car parked at at the normally busy local mountain bike trail carpark," the source said. Clark said he drove to a mountain bike trail called "The Big Easy". MONIQUE FORD/STUFF Health Minister David Clark said his Thursday afternoon trip to a mountain bike park was part of modelling a "healthy behaviour".
Source:Stuff
April 02, 2020 06:52 UTC
One hurt after air compressor explodes
One person has moderate injuries after an air compressor exploded in Milton this afternoon. A Fire and Emergency spokeswoman said two appliances from Milton were called to reports of an explosion in Hamilton Court at 2.10pm. Upon arrival they found an air compressor which was used for painting had exploded. A St John spokesman said one person was taken from a private address to Dunedin Hospital with moderate injuries.
Source:Otago Daily Times
April 02, 2020 06:33 UTC
Watchdogs vow to monitor human rights of the detained
Human Rights Commissioner Paul Hunt. The Chief Human Rights Commissioner Paul Hunt, the Children's Commissioner Andrew Becroft, the Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier and Amnesty International have made it clear they intend to monitor the rights of the vulnerable as closely as ever. A person who is in Government-provided detention, which they are not free to leave, is a person in detention under international human rights law. "Even in times of crisis, people in detention have human rights that safeguard their dignity." It comes as Amnesty International provides a briefing on human rights principles for the Epidemic Response Committee.
Source:Otago Daily Times
April 02, 2020 06:33 UTC
Coronavirus: Traffic pollution plummets across the country during lockdown
Traffic pollution and emissions have plunged in the big cities during the first week of the Covid-19 lockdown, according to Niwa analysis. READ MORE:* Coronavirus pandemic: Full coverage* Coronavirus: How to live lightly while in home lockdown* Coronavirus: Auckland air quality improves by up to 90% in lockdown* Coronavirus: Pollution above China clears as economic slowdown hitsIn Wellington's CBD, pollutant levels fell by three quarters this week. STACY SQUIRES/STUFF Clear skies and dropping levels of air pollution around the country are one result of the government's four-week lockdown. Nitrogen oxides measured at Queen Street – a city-centre road with some of the highest levels of traffic emissions in the country – were down by 51 per cent. New Zealand's air quality improvements under lockdown measures could be world-leading, he said.
Source:Stuff
April 02, 2020 06:22 UTC
Coronavirus: The slightly curious but essential items you can buy in lockdown
Beauty and decorThe Warehouse has a range of key essential items of which include household cleaning equipment, bedding, pet food and more. The Warehouse Website/ Screenshot These nose strips are to help clear blocked pores. SIMON O'CONNOR/STUFF The Warehouse has closed its stores but is now allowed to sell essential items online. "We went live with the Noel Leeming website for essentials one Tuesday night and for The Warehouse essentials [on Wednesday] morning." The Warehouse website/ Screenshot There are a range of warm blankets people can now buy on The Warehouse website.
Source:Stuff
April 02, 2020 06:00 UTC
Coronavirus: Bridge-jumpers publicly shamed for flouting lockdown rules
Police have been alerted to a large group of people flouting lockdown rules by jumping off a bridge near Wanaka. Queenstown Lakes District Council The group was photographed jumping from the Albert Town Bridge, near Wanaka. READ MORE:* Coronavirus: Jacinda Ardern unleashes on 20-somethings not taking virus seriously* Coronavirus: PM Jacinda Ardern announces alert system - 'this is about saving lives'* Coronavirus: Simple measures can make a big difference, writes Andrew Little MPPolice have been approached for comment. SUPPLIED People jumping off the Albert Town Bridge during the lockdown. It comes a day after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern unleashed on 20-somethings who weren't taking the coronavirus lockdown seriously.
Source:Stuff
April 02, 2020 04:53 UTC
'Not acceptable': Council scolds bridge jumpers
alberttownbridgejumpers.jpg A group of people at the Albert Town bridge today. Photo: QLDCA large group of people were spotted jumping off Albert Town Bridge today, despite the Level 4 lockdown being in place, and have garnered the disapproval of the local council. Queenstown Lakes District Council posted a photo of the group, showing one male and one female leaning over the side of the bridge ready to jump into the river below, on its Facebook page. “Do we really need to say that this type of activity is not acceptable at a time of national lockdown? The country is currently in lockdown on Alert Level 4 because of Covid-19.
Source:Otago Daily Times
April 02, 2020 04:41 UTC
Coronavirus NZ podcast: Tiger King economy - what we’re watching during lockdown
Coronavirus NZ is a new daily podcast, hosted by Stuff's Adam Dudding and Eugene Bingham, looking at the Covid-19 pandemic from a Kiwi perspective. In today's episode: What do you do when the cinemas, music venues and bars are all shut? Stuff's entertainment director Nicky Park phones in from a toddler's teepee, and surveys the options still available to culture vultures. SUPPLIED Stuff entertainment director Nicky Park in her makeshift teepee office with her home office helper. A new episode of Coronavirus NZ will be released each weekday, around 5pm.
Source:Stuff
April 02, 2020 04:07 UTC
Coronavirus: Police help round up Whangārei freedom campers
Freedom campers parked up around the Whangārei district are being moved to central locations, in part so police can keep a regular eye on them during the coronavirus lockdown. Police started moving freedom campers to two central Whangārei locations on Thursday, despite unnecessary travel being banned in the coronavirus lockdown. JOHN KIRK-ANDERSON/STUFF Freedom campers in other parts of the country have a more relaxed approach to the coronavirus lockdown. The freedom campers are mostly international tourists who are "stranded" but also include New Zealanders living in their campervans or buses, Halliwell said. Whangārei ratepayers are encouraged to be kind to the freedom campers, Sandra Boardman, the council's general manager of community, said.
Source:Stuff
April 02, 2020 03:56 UTC
Desert Road remains: case now a homicide
The case of human remains being discovered near the Desert Road is now officially a homicide inquiry, police say. The remains, believed to belong to a Chinese man missing since 2017, were discovered last week in a shallow grave on Rangipo Intake Road near Tongariro. The New Zealand Herald revealed this week that police had searched a property on McWhirters Farm Lane in the west Auckland suburb of Massey in connection with the case. Police are still working to formally identify the remains. The remains were believed to have been in the grave for quite some time before being discovered by police.
Source:Otago Daily Times
April 02, 2020 03:33 UTC