As the last active case of Coronavirus infection recovered, New Zealand is the first country to become free of COVID-19. The authorities informed on Monday that the country’s final patient was cleared and released from isolation. The good news came during a time when most of the world is struggling in dealing with the pandemic.
The Director general of Health Department on Monday said that having no actives in the country since February is a really good news and an achievement of the country. Remaining patient had been symptom free for the past 48 hours and thus regarded as recovered. He has been released from isolation now by the health department.
“Having no active cases for the first time since February 28 is certainly a significant mark in our journey but, as we’ve previously said, ongoing vigilance against COVID-19 will continue to be essential,” Health Department director-general Ashley Bloomfield said on Monday. He added that the milestone was “really good news” and an achievement the whole of New Zealand could take heart from.
It has been 17 days since the last new case was reported for the country and its Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern expressed confidence that they have eliminated the transmission. However, she cautioned that the elimination is not a point of time but a sustained effort. The PM announced that country’s social distancing restrictions will be removed from Monday midnight as the country moves to level 1 national from level 2 in dealing with the pandemic.
With the spread of coronavirus that originated from Wuhan city of China, world came to a halt. There are lockdowns implemented in most countries leading to a completed stop of international flights. The pandemic has now infected more than 6.6 million people across the world. It has claimed more than 393K human lives and overwhelmed the health systems in most of the countries.
New Zealand has won praise for its handling of the pandemic, which involved a strict seven-week lockdown that ended last month after the virus was contained. With a population of five million, it has had 1,154 confirmed cases and 22 deaths.