Mayor urges ongoing vigilance with covid precautions
“Get vaccinated, get tested if you have symptoms and take precautions to protect yourself, your whanau and the community.”
That’s the message from Rotorua Mayor Steve Chadwick who is this week recovering from COVID-19 following several days of feeling “extremely unwell” with severe flu-like symptoms.
“This has certainly highlighted for me how real and potentially severe COVID can be and the need to take the pandemic seriously,” she says.
“This was not like any flu I have experienced before – it hit me very hard and I am fully vaccinated and boosted and generally fit and healthy. I’m feeling much better now but still not one hundred percent.
“I have followed all instructions and have been impressed with the follow-up including daily checks from a nurse and contact from my GP, so I’ve been very well supported by the health sector and by the council organisation and friends which I’ve appreciated very much.”
Mayor Chadwick says her experience has served as a stark reminder for her about the importance of vaccination and boosters to reduce the spread and the severity of symptoms.
“If you’re eligible for your booster, don’t put it off, especially given the rapid increase in Omicron case numbers we are now seeing.
“Get tested if you have symptoms and isolate until you’re all clear – and be patient and kind to those working so hard at our testing stations which we know are stretched due to increased demand.”
The mayor says it also remains important to be vigilant about handwashing, mask wearing, social distancing and tracking where you go to assist with contact tracing.
She was tested last Thursday morning after waking with severe aches and pains and feeling generally “extremely unwell” and received her positive result on Sunday.
Neither the mayor nor another member of the council organisation who is a likely case (pending test results) have been in the office while symptomatic. Close contacts have been notified and tomorrow’s (Thursday 24 February) Council meeting, which the mayor will chair, will be held via Zoom as a precautionary measure. Today’s (Wednesday 23 February) Lakes Community Board meeting was also held via Zoom.
Rotorua Lakes Council Chief Executive Geoff Williams says cases within the council organisation is not unexpected and that’s why there has been a precautionary approach to date.
A deep clean of potentially impacted work spaces in the Civic Centre has been carried out and contact tracing to identify close contacts was undertaken with some staff awaiting confirmation about whether or not they are a close contact working from home as a precaution.
“The safety of our staff, elected members and the public is a priority and it’s also vital for us to continue taking precautions to ensure we are able to continue providing uninterrupted essential services to our community.
“We want to do what we can to minimise the impact of the current Omicron surge on our organisation and the community and will continue to review and monitor the situation and make decisions accordingly,” Mr Williams says.
As is usual practice, tomorrow’s Council meeting will be livestreamed and members of the public and media will be able to view the meeting live via Council’s YouTube channel which can be found at THIS LINK .