A little more detail on the two most recent cases:
The pair have returned weak positive results and are at home isolating, a ministry spokesman said on Wednesday evening.
“It is yet to be confirmed if they are recent or historical infections,” he said.
“Further urgent testing is being carried out this evening.”
The results of those tests were expected later on Wednesday night, a spokesman said.
The people are asymptomatic and previously returned two negative tests, the ministry spokesman said.
“As a precaution, Public Health staff are checking details with the individuals about their movements since they left managed isolation to identify close and casual contacts if contact tracing is required.”
Microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles told Radio NZ’s Checkpoint a weak positive result can indicate either the “very start” of an infection, or a historical infection.
“Both of those two things are really, really important, and that’s why further testing is being carried out to confirm that,” she said.
“If it’s a historical case then this is obviously somebody who has had COVID in the past and is not infectious.
“If it’s a weak positive, that is the very start of an infection, then it may well be just at the very start of somebody becoming infectious.”
If the results of urgent testing come back positive, any decisions about changing coronavirus alert levels would depend on how many places the people visited while infectious, Wiles said.
COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said earlier on Wednesday 255 guests of the Pullman had tested negative, and more tests were pending.
The New Zealand Ministry of Health is carrying out “urgent testing” after two more people tested positive for COVID-19 after leaving hotel quarantine.
www.smh.com.au
So just as we have often seen in Australia, including with recent examples at the AO, with weak positive results further testing and analysis is being done to determine whether they are recovered cases now viral shedding, or whether it is indeed a genuine new infection for one or both of these two new cases.