New zealand winegrowers annual report

New Zealand on Sunday reported three new locally acquired COVID-19 cases, the country’s first since late January, when a returned traveller tested positive after leaving quarantine. New Zealand’s minister for COVID-19 response, Chris Hipkins, said the three cases were a couple and their daughter in Auckland, and that genomic testing was being conducted to see if the family’s infection was linked to any highly infectious variants. The new cases, the first since Jan. 24, forced Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to return to the capital Wellington, skipping a gay pride event in Auckland that she was due to attend on Sunday afternoon. “Our system has swung into action,” Hipkins told a hastily called media conference. “We are gathering all of the facts as quickly as we can. And the system that’s served us so well in the past is really gearing up to do so again.” New Zealand - which had gone more than two months without infection before the January case - is to start inoculating its 5 million people against the new coronavirus on Feb. 20, after receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine earlier than anticipated. The country remains on alert level 1 for COVID-19, its lowest level, with no restrictions. “No further consideration of change to alert levels has been taken at this point. We will collect more information before we would make any such decision,” Hipkins said. Health authorities are still working to find out how the family contracted the virus and “whether COVID-19 could be out there in the community ... or whether this is the start of what could be a chain of transmission,” he said. As a precaution, the high school of the girl in the family will be closed on Monday and Tuesday, with COVID-19 testing facilities to be set up there, officials said. Airlines have also been contacted, as the woman in the infected family works for an airline catering company, LSG Sky Chefs, where she mostly works in the laundry facilities, they said. …

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WELLINGTON/SYDNEY -- A 7.7 magnitude undersea earthquake struck the South Pacific region on Thursday, triggering a brief tsunami warning for Australia and New Zealand that was cancelled, with no immediate reports of damage. The European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said the quake’s epicentre was 417 kilometres (258 miles) east of Tadine, New Caledonia, and at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). Tsunami centres across the region sent alerts for the public to stay off beaches and shore areas due to risks of unexpected currents and unusual waves. Those warnings were later cancelled, and authorities said any tsunami threat to mainlands in Australia and New Zealand had passed. “Based on the most recent modelling and decreasing tsunami amplitudes at North Cape, Great Barrier Island and the East Cape, the tsunami threat has passed for New Zealand,” the National Emergency Management Agency said in a statement. “There could still be large unexpected currents and the public are advised to continue to take precautions in coastal zones for the rest of today,” it added. Australia cancelled a marine tsunami warning it had issued for residents of Lord Howe Island, a marine reserve more than 700 kilometres northeast of Sydney. There was no threat to the mainland, it said. The quake followed at least three other tremors in the region with magnitudes ranging from 5.7 to 6.1 in a span of just over an hour. There were no immediate reports of damage near the epicentre in New Caledonia, John Ristau, a seismologist from New Zealand-based GNS Science, told NewsHub’s The AM Show. “It’s most likely that damage would have been minimal if anything at all,” he said, adding that Thursday morning’s earthquake could trigger more tremors. The U.S. Tsunami Warning System said a tsunami watch was in effect for American Samoa and cited a potential for tsunamis in other regions including Vanuatu, Fiji and New Zealand. Waves reaching up to a level of 1 metre (3.3 feet) above …

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The Hanoitimes - Both Australia and New Zealand are easing restrictions except border controls. Vietnam on June 2 repatriated 344 citizens from Australia and New Zealand, the first repatriation flight from those two countries amid strict travel rules there due to coronavirus. Passengers on the flight. Photo: Vietnam Airlines The flight by national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines picked up passengers in Sydney and Auckland and landed at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City. The passengers are those of priority like children under 18, the elderly, those with pre-existing diseases, pregnant women, workers having expired visa, student without dormitories, and stranded visitors. All passengers required to wear personal protection equipment. Photo: Vietnam Airlines Australia has become one of the main destinations for Vietnamese students and visitors. Due to rising coronavirus infections, Australia has limited travel options. It is up to each state and territory to decide when and how far they will relax restrictions. Meanwhile, New Zealand’s government will consider a move to lift all Covid-19 restrictions except border controls. As of June 2, Australia reported 7,221 coronavirus cases while New Zealand has 1,504 infections. Under the request by Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Vietnamese diplomatic missions abroad and Vietnam Airlines continue to bring citizens home depending on the citizens' demand, the pandemic evolution, and the country’s quarantine capacity. So far, the country has repatriated more than 5,000 citizens from different parts of the world. Until now, Vietnam has not allowed international flights and keeps borders closed to foreign visitors, except for diplomatic staff, skilled workers, and experts. …

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