‘Go hard and early ‘: New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern on lockdown

New Zealand was put under a three-day lockdown after a COVID case was reported in Auckland on Tuesday. The community case was reported for the first time in six months and a snap lockdown was imposed in a bid to halt any spread of the infectious Delta variant of COVID-19.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern ordered a snap 3-day nationwide lockdown on Tuesday whereas Auckland has been put under seven-day lockdown. She said that it was better to go hard and go early than going light and long and ending up in prolonged lockdowns.

In her speech on Wednesday, Ardern confirmed the new case was the Delta variant and said there were now 5 confirmed cases in total. One of the new cases is a fully vaccinated nurse from Auckland Hospital

New Zealand has been praised for being one of the countries to contain the spread of deadly coronavirus with only 26 deaths in a population of five million.

According to Reuters, the capital city Wellington saw few people venturing out, which would normally be bustling with shoppers and office workers.

People resorted to panic buying after the lockdown announcement, with people stocking essentials at supermarkets despite repeated assurances from the government that there will be no shortage in supplies.

Finance Minister Grant Robertson said the government will reinstate a wage subsidy from Friday if the country is still in lockdown.

The country has so far reported about 2,500 confirmed coronavirus cases.