WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Monday extended a lockdown in Auckland by two weeks, while officials reported the country's first death linked to the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. Ardern's tough and swift lockdowns, along with closing the international border from March 2020, were credited with reining in COVID-19 in the country. VACCINE DEATHThe health ministry on Monday announced a woman had died due to myocarditis, which is known to be a rare side effect of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. New Zealand has provisionally approved use of the Pfizer-BioNTech, Janssen and AstraZeneca vaccines, but only the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has been approved for rollout to the public. Ardern said the country has 840,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine remaining and it continues to receive 350,000 doses each week.

Source: The Star August 30, 2021 06:45 UTC