Infectious diseases expert and Associate Health Minister Ayesha Verrall says the Government is keeping an open mind to the source of the Valentine's Day outbreak. And because genomic testing hasn't linked the Auckland family's cases to a returnee from MIQ that reduces the chance of undetected community transmission that "escaped" somehow, Verrall told the Herald. "That is reassuring but of course we continue to do all our double-checks by doing community testing and we encourage anyone with symptoms to get tested." The advent and implementation of sewage testing will also help officials gauge whether there has been wider community transmission. Verrall said after finding out the outbreak was the UK variant - which is about 50 per cent more infectious than other variants - she had a sense of relief that Auckland was in lockdown.

Source: New Zealand Herald February 14, 2021 23:09 UTC