Coronavirus: Auckland man lives in self-isolation after first Covid-19 case confirmed

Monday, 2 March 2020

Whitford resident Murray Peat went into self-isolation after sitting near a person with a 'violent' cough at hospital.

Murray Peat is in self-isolation at his Auckland home due to fears over coronavirus.

But unlike the people who have flown through China or Iran and gone into quarantine, Peat's situation is different.

The 65-year-old Whitford resident visited Auckland Hospital on Thursday for a gastroscopy and colonoscopy.

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'When I came out of sedation there was a person coughing quite violently in the ward. They were in the waiting room while I was getting ready to leave.'

The sign on Murray Peat's door notifying people he is in self-isolation due to coronavirus.

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Whitford resident Murray Peat has been in self-isolation since February 29 due to his concerns about coronavirus.

But Peat said it was only after he arrived home and read about the first confirmed case of coronavirus in the country he decided to self-isolate. According to the Ministry of Health there are currently 1710 people in New Zealand who have registered with Healthline and are living in self isolation. While 5119 people have already completed self quarantining.

Peat works in property development with a number of people from South Korea who travel to and from the country.

South Korea has the worst outbreak of the virus outside of mainland China with 21 people dead and more than 3700 confirmed cases.

'So I thought I would go into precautionary self-isolation for two weeks,' Peat said. 'Thankfully my employer agreed with me doing it. So I'm busily working from home.

'I've notified all of my family and friends and told them not to visit me for the next two weeks. My family are completely in support of what I'm doing and my friends think it's the right thing to do.'

He stocked up on enough food from the supermarket on Thursday, he said.

Peat said he was not worried about people criticising him.

'I accept that some people might think I'm being overly cautious. But I would prefer to be that than dead.'

Peat said he could not understand why the Government had not imposed a travel ban on South Korea.

WHAT IS SELF ISOLATION?

Self-isolation means staying away from situations where you could infect other people, or coming into close contact with others (face-to-face contact closer than 1 metre for more than 15 minutes).

This included social gatherings, such as work, school, child care/pre-school centres, university, polytechnic and other education providers, faith-based gatherings, aged care and health care facilities, prisons, sports gatherings, restaurants and all public gatherings.

The Government has asked for people to self-isolate for 14 days if they have travelled to mainland China or Iran, or have been in close contact with someone with a confirmed case of Covid-19 in the last 14 days.

A Ministry of Health spokesperson said there are 1710 people in New Zealand who have registered with Healthline and are living in self isolation.

'We are asking people to take simple, common-sense steps to avoid close contact with other people as much as possible, like you would with the seasonal flu virus. We know it is a stressful time, but taking these measures will help protect you, your family, and all of New Zealand from Covid-19 and other common infectious diseases,' the Ministry of Health website advised.

People should call Healthline's Covid-19 helpline (0800 358 5453) if they have concerns about their own exposure to the virus.