There are 35 new Covid-19 community cases to report on Friday, the Ministry of Health says.
The new cases are in Auckland (18), Waikato (1), Bay of Plenty (13) and Lakes (3).
Thirty-seven people are in hospital with the virus, including three in an intensive care or high dependency unit.
The ministry said one of the new cases in the Lakes District DHB area was a Rotorua-based MIQ worker.
They tested positive for the virus on Wednesday and are currently isolating.
Experts warn the Omicron variant is well on its way to a place near you. (Source: 1News)
Investigations are underway to determine if their infection originated from the community or the facility.
The ministry said the worker is fully vaccinated and up-to-date with regular testing.
"The nature of their work means they do not normally have direct contact with returnees," the ministry said in a statement.
Whole genome sequencing results are expected for the worker later on Friday.
The other two cases in the DHB's area are in Rotorua and Taupō.
The ministry said a case in Northland reported in Thursday's numbers had been reclassified as historical.
There will be no Covid-19 update from the ministry tomorrow (Saturday). The next update will be on Sunday, January 9.
The fresh case in Waikato is in Hamilton and has been linked to an earlier case.
The new cases in the Bay of Plenty are in Tauranga (12) and the Western Bay of Plenty District (1).
Nine of the case are contacts of earlier cases, while the source for the remaining four cases is being investigated.
The ministry also said there were 24 new Covid-19 cases at the border.
They had arrived in the country between December 27 and Wednesday, January 5.
They had travelled from the UK, Qatar, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates, US, Australia, Fiji, Singapore, India and Spain.
There will be no Covid-19 update from the ministry tomorrow (Saturday). The next update will be on Sunday, January 9.
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