Auckland, New Zealand — New Zealand extends the coronavirus restrictions in the country as new cases rises.
After the country reported eight new cases on Monday, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern announced on the same day that the level 3 coronavirus restrictions in Auckland will be extended until Sunday, August 03.
“The Director-General (of Health) has recommended to cabinet, and cabinet has agreed to apply a short extension of level 3 restrictions in Auckland till 11:59 p.m. this Sunday 30 August,” Ardern said in a news conference.
“This is a contained cluster, but it is our biggest one, that means the tail will be long and the cases will keep coming for a while to come.”
Aukland, the country’s most populous city will be move down to a modified alert level 2 setting after the extended period of level 3 restrictions ends on Sunday, according to Ardern.
Although Aukland is on level 3, the rest of New Zealand will continue to remain at level 2 restrictions. The current restrictions with Auckland at level 3 and the rest of the country at level 2 were originally set to be lifted at midnight on Wednesday.
“Our ongoing goal is to maintain our elimination strategy while trying to reduce the impact on as many people and businesses as possible,” Ardern said.
