All restrictions imposed on New Zealand to fight the coronavirus epidemic will be lifted from Tuesday, June 9, with the exception of the border closures, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday as the country no longer has any patients with Covid-19.
Jacinda Ardern said that public and private events can take place without any restrictions, the shops operate normally. She said all public transport will resume.
Earlier Monday, the health ministry said the last person who was hospitalized with the coronavirus had recovered. “The last case had no symptoms for 48 hours and is considered recovered”, said the ministry of health.
“Important milestone”
Department of Health Director General Ashley Bloomfield saw this step as a success the whole country could be proud of. “The fact that we have no active cases for the first time since February 28 is certainly an important milestone in our journey but, as we said earlier, it will be essential to maintain vigilance against the Covid-19”, he said in a statement.
No new contamination had been noted for seventeen days. It has been a week since there has been only one active case. This does not mean that the virus has disappeared permanently in New Zealand, however warned the health ministry in a statement.
New Zealand has been praised for its effective response to the coronavirus epidemic, which involved including strict confinement for seven weeks until May. The South Pacific archipelago, which has a population of five million, has recorded 1,154 confirmed cases and 22 deaths.
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