COVID 19 and Te Tau Ihu
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2020 was the year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and its impact continues to felt across the world. New Zealand suffered few deaths, and relatively few cases, however the economic, social and emotional impact of lockdown and closed borders, alongside the constant fear of what might happen, has been significant.

COVID 19. New Zealand Government logo - be kind
Te Tau Ihu, like most of the South Island suffered few cases and deaths, but experienced restrictions and lockdowns with the rest of the country. The nationwide lockdowns of March to May 2020, when the country was in Alert Levels 3 & 4, and people had to stay at home and remain within their household bubble, may turn out to be one of the defining historic moments of the 21st century.
The Life in the Bubble project, initiated by the Nelson Provincial Museum, Nelson Public and Tasman District Libraries, invited people to document their experiences of this time, in physical and digital formats. Alongside this, the Nelson Provincial Museum collected created in response to the pandemic. Many of these objects, documents, photographs and associated stories can be seen on the Museum’s Collections online site.
Pieces written for the Life in the Bubble Project
A collection of pieces contributed by the community to the project.
Diaries
- Rosemary Venner - Covid Diary (March 26 - April 27 2020)
- Terri Leighton - Day 2 of Level 4
- Blog in a time of virus by Jan Marsh
- Lockdown Diaries - Olive Estate Writers Group
- A visual diary - Karen Lee

Life in the Bubble - visual diary by Karen Lee. The Kitchen. Image supplied by author
Poems
- Jan's response to Covid - Jan Glover
- Life in the Bubble - poem from the Nelson Cathedral Bulletin
- Lockdown Poem - Olive Estate Lifestyle Village Writers Group
- Lockdown Poem - Julie Meagher Olive Estate
- Life in the Bubble - Jo Blackmore
- Life in the Bubble Chris Bentley

Life in the Bubble - visual diary by Karen Lee. Shopping. Image supplied by author
Writings and thoughts
- The reality of routine at home by Charles Anderson
- Life in the Bubble - Anonymouse
- Recollection by Katrina Raven
- Life in the Bubble by Lizette Araceli Ramirez Ramos
- Life in the Bubble by Marisela Hernandezo
- Life in the Bubble by Sally Warwood
- Life in the Bubble - Grant Newman (Air New Zealand)
- The chrysalis - JingJing Jackson
Pictures

Life in the Bubble Visual diary by Karen Lee. Mothers Day. Image supplied by author

Life in the Bubble visual diary by Karen Lee. Zoom. Image supplied by author
Contributions from children and young adults
- Common themes from local Rangitahi teens
- Lockdown Photo essay - Lucy Daughtrey
- Post-it note thoughts:
Selection 1
Selection 2
Selection 3
Selection 4 - Life in the Bubble - Laela-Mae Keeler
- Life in the Bubble - Matti Raven
- Life in the Bubble - Bobby Besley
- Life in the Bubble - Ben Stanley
- Life in the Bubble - Nathan Lee Hall
COVID-19 and Te Tau Ihu - a summary
The first case in the region was notified to the Nelson Marlborough Medical Officers of Health on 20 March, and the last one on 29 April, with a total of 50 cases. Three cases required acute hospital care for some stage of their illness – two at Wairau Hospital and one at Nelson Hospital. Two people required intensive care. 32 acute hospital bed-days were used to care for COVID-19 patients, across intensive care and general wards. No COVID-19 deaths were recorded locally.
Some statistics:
- 27 cases were women, 23 were men. The ages ranged from 12-82 years, with a median age of 45 years.
- The ethnicity breakdown is: 41 cases European or ‘other’, 7 cases ethnicity Māori, 1 case NZ European/Māori, 1 case Pasifika
- The regional breakdown for cases under territorial authorities (the national requirement for case reporting) is: 22 cases were resident in the Marlborough District, 21 in the Tasman District, 7 in Nelson City.
A timeline:
- 29 December 2019 - Chinese authorities advise the WHO of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause, originating in Wuhan, Hubei province.
- 7 January 2020- China isolates a novel coronavirus, at first called 2019-nCoV and later SARS-CoV-2
- 30 January - WHO declares the epidemic a global health emergency
- 12 February - Disease renamed COVID-19
- 16 March - Government bans non-essential outdoor gatherings of 500-plus people; schools and universities exempt
- 19 March - Government bans indoor events with more than 100 people; exemptions for workplaces, schools, supermarkets and public transport. Government also advises New Zealanders not to travel overseas and urges New Zealanders who are travelling overseas to consider returning home immediately
- 20 March - Border closed to most foreigners
- 21 March – Following the border closure, an alert level system is announced. New Zealand is at Level 2
- 23 March - Government lifts country to Alert Level 3 and announces widespread restrictions on movement will come into effect at 11.59pm on 25 March under Alert Level 4
- 27 April - Total deaths: 19. Combined total 1469. Alert Level reduced from 4 to 3 at 11.59pm
- 13 May – With no new cases, in stages over the coming days, New Zealand moves from Alert Level 3 to 2
A complete Covid timeline for New Zealand has been compiled by NZDoctor.
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Further sources - COVID 19 and Te Tau Ihu
Books
- Little, P. (2020) The Covid chronicles: Lessons from New Zealand. Auckland, New Zealand : HarperCollinsPublishers
https://tepuna.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1197685817 - Turnbull, M. (2020) A Snapshot of Covid-19 Alert Level 4 Lockdown. Mapua, Ruby Bay New Zealand. Mapua: Michael Turnbull
- Waimea Intermediate school (2020) Riding the covid wave. [Richmond, New Zealand] : Waimea Intermediate School
https://tepuna.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1231559885
Web Resources
- Documenting COVID - one year on. National Library blog post. Retrieved 39 March 2021
https://natlib.govt.nz/blog/posts/documenting-covid-19-one-year-on - Nelson Provincial Museum. Covid 19 collection:
https://collection.nelsonmuseum.co.nz/objects?query=covid - Nelson Marlborough District Health board - Coronavirus. Retrieved 24 March 2021
https://www.nmdhb.govt.nz/quicklinks/about-us/emergency-management-and-planning/covid-19/ - New Zealand Ministry of Health - Covid 19 information. Retrieved 24 March 2021:
https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus - Timeline coronavirus - Covid 19. Retrieved from NZDoctor 24 March 2021
https://www.nzdoctor.co.nz/timeline-coronavirus
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