Breaking News – New Zealand Declared the Nation COVID-free

New Zealand is an island country with a total population of 5 million. It is located in the Southwestern Pacific Ocean. With the outbreak of Covid19 (coronavirus), New Zealand reported its first active case on February 28th. It was almost after a month when the US reported its first Covid-19 case. Now the Prime Minister of New Zealand has announced to lift all the restrictions from today. The country is now COVID free with no active case. and It’s a breaking news headlines today.

The whole nation greeted the announcement with joy. They will be having fans back in the stadiums and concerts. According to the latest news, there is no more positive case in the country from the last 17 days. This news is trending as the best world news today. During the whole time, they tested a total of 300,000 people. They had a total of 1504 cases and reported 22 deaths.  However, the last patient of the corona has been recovered and discharged from the hospital now.

At a local news conference, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said:

“We are confident we have eliminated the transmission of the virus in New Zealand for now, but elimination is not a point in time, it is a sustained effort. We almost certainly will see cases here again, and I do want to say that again, we will almost certainly see cases here again, and that is not a sign that we have failed, it is a reality of this virus. But if and when that occurs we have to make sure – and we are – that we are prepared.”

From today, all the schools and workplaces will be open. There will be no restriction on gathering and travel with in the country. However, the prime minister still encourages social distancing. Moreover, they will not open the international borders to control new outbreaks.

The prime minister said she almost danced with joy when she heard the news of no active case. In a Facebook live video, she said:

“It was very exciting information to hear, so I confess that when I heard that information I did do a — I don’t even know if I could describe it as a dance — some semi-coordinated movement around the lounge”.                       

Time Table of Lockdown-A Reason for COVID-free Country:

February 28 was the day when the first case was reported in New Zealand. On March 14, the country had 6 active cases. The prime minister announced that anyone who enters the country would need to self-isolate for at least 14 days. Moreover, on March 20^th, all the foreigners were banned to enter the country. On March 23^rd, there were 102 confirmed cases. A “three-level” lockdown was announced. All non-essential, activities, businesses, and gatherings were closed. People were allowed to work from home.

On March 25^th, a strict “4 levels” lockdown was declared. People were not allowed to leave home except for any important work. On April 9^th, the cases started decreasing. However, there was still a strict border restriction. Every resident incoming was required to quarantine him/her self for 14 days.

Today, all of the restrictions are lifted as there are no active cases in the country. For sure, Monday was the day of celebration for all of them. Get more updates about Corona Virus