New Zealand will remain at Alert Level 2 until September 16 to reduce the risk of coronavirus spread, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced in a press conference Friday.
“There’s still a chance of spread outside of Auckland. If that does happen. Level Two ceilings lessen the impact of any spread. That means we avoid further fall out,” Ardern said.
What is Alert Level 2: Face coverings are mandatory on public transportation and no more than 100 people are allowed at gatherings.
Auckland remains at Level 2.5, allowing for no more than 10 people at gatherings, after the city was linked to a Covid-19 cluster in August.
“At this stage, the Auckland cluster remains contained and there is no indication at this stage that Auckland needs, for instance, to move back to level three,” Ardern said.
The government will reevaluate alert levels on September 14, the Prime Minister added.
New Zealand has 1,413 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus after reporting five new cases Friday. Of the new cases, two were imported and under the age of nine years old, the government said.
