New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Monday further extended a strict, nationwide lockdown as an outbreak of the delta strain of coronavirus continues to grow.
The entire country will remain at Level 4 restrictions, the highest level of lockdown, until midnight Aug. 27, Ardern told a news conference Monday in Wellington. That means the lockdown, initially put in place for three days, will now be in force for at least 10 days. Auckland, the epicenter of the outbreak, will remain at Level 4 for two weeks until midnight Aug. 31.
"We do need more information, we need more certainty,” Ardern said. "We don’t want to take any risks with delta.”
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