There are 46 new Covid-19 cases in the community on Wednesday, and 17 Omicron cases have been recorded at the border, the Ministry of Health has announced.

Covid-19 testing clinic sign.Covid-19 testing clinic sign. (Source: istock.com)

 

The community cases are in Northland (3), Auckland (30), Waikato (6), Lakes (4), Tairāwhiti (2) and Canterbury (1).

The total number of Omicron cases detected at the border is now 71.

The ministry said the Tairāwhiti cases were reported on Sunday, December 26, but were unable to be added to official numbers until Wednesday due to “data reporting issues”.

Forty-eight people are in hospital with the virus, including seven in an intensive care or high dependency unit.

Northland’s three new cases are located in Hokianga. They are all from the same household and are linked to an existing case.

Five of Waikato’s six new cases are in Te Kūiti. The sixth case has a Palmerston North residential address.

All of Waikato’s six new cases are linked to previous cases.

The four new cases in the Lakes DHB area are in Rotorua.

Three of the four new cases are close contacts of known cases and investigations are underway to determine how the other case is linked to the current outbreak.

The new case in Canterbury is a close contact of another case. They are isolating in the community.

On Tuesday, 18 community cases were announced.