Tāmaki vaccination centre will be pulling an all nighter on Friday, in a bid to inch the city closer to its 90 per cent vaccination target rate.
The centre on Morrin Road in St Johns will open at 8am on Friday and continue vaccinating until 6.30am on Saturday. It will be run in partnership with Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and feature local musicians until 9pm and a socially-distanced BBQ until sausages run out. Site lead Teara Gillman said her team wanted to give “everything a go” to make sure everyone had the chance to access a vaccine. “The aim is to reach all of those people who work at night or late in the evening because many of these people are often sleeping during the day when our site is open,” she said. “We’re reaching out to all local whānau, shift workers, our local high school students and any other night owls to come on down on Friday to get a sausage for a shot if you haven’t yet been vaccinated.”
There is also a free taxi service in Auckland for those who still need to get their first dose and were having difficulty getting to a vaccination centre. The Government is also ramping up its efforts to reach those who still haven't received their jabs. Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins has declared October 16 as a "National Day of Action" for vaccines. “We’ve got a plan and to make it work we’re asking everyone to contribute to a big, nationwide push for vaccination. This will culminate in a National Day of Action for vaccination on Saturday 16 October,” he said.
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Christmas gifts stolen from parked car prompts warning over holiday break-ins
An Auckland man whose Christmas presents were stolen from his car on a quiet street is warning others not to repeat his mistake.
Police and the AA say opportunistic thieves are breaking into cars more frequently during the Christmas period.
Jeremy Rees, an RNZ staff member in Auckland, had packed his car full of gifts when he decided to visit a friend.
“Everyone had handed over presents and we had a couple of bags full of presents sitting in the back of the car,” he said.
“I decided it would be great to go around and see a friend, drop off some presents and say hello. My wife said to me, ‘Are you sure we should be taking this car?’ I said, ‘I’m sure it’ll be fine’.
“I think it was only 20 minutes outside their house, a very quiet street. It was light [outside]. We came out and my wife pointed out that someone had smashed the rear window, reached in and grabbed the presents, and headed away.
“It was a shock. It was a shock partly because of the Christmas presents and partly because my wife had been telling me, ‘Don’t do that’.”
AA Insurance head of motor claims Beau Paparoa said roadside staff were responding to smashed windows more often.
“We definitely see car break-ins starting to occur a lot more around this time of year. We’re often hearing from customers and some of our roadside teams that there’s definitely a bit more opportunistic theft happening,” he said.
“We’re putting that down to it being a busy time of year. Everyone’s out doing their Christmas shopping and there’s much more presence of gifts and valuables being visible in the car.”
He encouraged people to be careful and make sure valuables were hidden from view.
“In terms of any valuables, if you’ve done some Christmas shopping, or if generally you’ve got valuables in your car, try [to] keep them locked away or out of sight – in your boot if you can,” he said.
“Where you’re parking is possibly a good thing to think about. If you can afford to, don’t park on the street, but if you have to park on-street, make sure you park in well-lit areas.”
Police said it was not uncommon for Christmas presents to be stolen.
“The key is to remove any opportunity. This includes taking valuables or documents out of vehicles wherever possible,” a spokesperson said.
Rees said he wished he had followed that advice.
“I feel a bit stupid, to be absolutely honest. I read all of the things from police saying ‘don’t do this, don’t pack your car, don’t just leave it on the street’, and I did exactly the opposite and I paid the price.”
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Auckland Harbour Bridge summer works
NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi is carrying out essential maintenance on the Auckland Harbour Bridge this December and January. The southbound clip-on lanes will be closed (24/7) from 26 December to 5 January for road resurfacing. Night-time lane restrictions will be in place throughout the summer for recoating work on the bridge. Traffic will still be able to travel in both directions at all times.
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