The entire country of New Zealand is under lockdown Wednesday. It was sparked by a single case of COVID-19 and shows how the country has adopted a different approach to deal with the virus.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern moved quickly after New Zealand’s first case of COVID-19 since February, saying, “We’ve seen the dire consequences of taking too long to act in other countries.”
That single case: a man who lives in Auckland — which is now under lockdown for a week.
The entire country is now in the midst of a three-day shutdown.
Four new cases were reported within the first day — and at least three more cases of community spread on Wednesday.
The prime minister confirmed the original case is the Delta variant, linked to an outbreak in Australia.
Meanwhile, New Zealand’s stay-at-home order is restricting travel and daily routines.
You can still go to grocery stores and pharmacies, medical appointments and exercise outside in your neighborhood — but not at a playground.
The country has adjusted to changes since its first lockdown from March to May 2020.
The head of the country’s largest grocery store chain says business was nearly double a usual weekday on the first day of the current lockdown.
But he also said there were no runs on toilet paper — which ranked only number 12 on a list of the most popular items with consumers.
Number three was milk, number two: bananas.
And the most popular item for those on lockdown: broccoli.
