Flu, cold symptoms? Get Covid test

The Northland District Health Board is strongly encouraging people to get tested for Covid over the holidays if they have cold or flu symptoms. There were no new cases in the 24 hours to midnight on Monday and no cases in hospitals across Northland.
Testing centres and opening hours can be found on www.northlanddhb.org.nz.
From today, the interval between the second dose and the booster dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine reduces from six months to four. Northland DHB is urging all whānau, who are eligible to have the booster dose, to do so. From January 17, tamariki aged between five and 12 will be eligible for the vaccine. Those aged 12 and over are already eligible.

Boat preparedness drive

Northland police are urging boaties to ensure their boats are in good condition before venturing out to sea. It follows a number of calls to police for help with breakdowns, especially to deal with issues such as batteries going flat and leaks in boats. Senior Sergeant Brian Swann said boaties should do their check, especially if they have not used their boats for a while, for sea worthiness and to ensure they have adequate means of communication before going out. A police Search and Rescue team was alerted to a group of swimmers that got swept out to sea at Matauri Bay yesterday but Swann said they managed to swim back to shore.

Report bad drivers: Police

Police have urged motorists to continue reporting driver behaviour on *555 on Northland roads this festive season. Senior Sergeant Brian Swann said while there have not been reports of an increase in traffic flow as at lunch hour yesterday, officers were receiving complaints about general driver behaviour. He expected southbound traffic to pick up late yesterday and appealed for drivers to be patient, drive to the conditions, and to plan their journey. "There's been a constant stream of people calling us about concerning driving and we encourage them to keep reporting them. We'd rather have these calls come in early than having to attend to crashes," Swann said.

Car thefts probed

Northland police are investigating the unlawful taking of a number of cars, many stolen for the purpose of joyriding. Several cars have been broken into and driven away in Whangārei, Mid-north, and in Kaitaia, since the holiday season began and most of them have been recovered. Senior Sergeant Brian Swann said the vehicles targeted were from the early 2000s as they were easier to steal.