NZ Has First COVID Death in 3 Months

New Zealand reported its first death from the coronavirus in more than three months on Friday. Health authorities said a man in his 50s died at an Auckland hospital where he was being treated for the virus following a small outbreak in the city that began last month, the AP reports. The man, a father of four, is the youngest person in the country to die from the virus, reports the New Zealand Herald.

New Zealand has reported more than 1,700 cases and 23 deaths. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said New Zealand would keep its current coronavirus restrictions until at least mid-September. A lockdown in Auckland has been eased, but crowd sizes are limited across the country. “As with last time, a cautious approach is the best long-term strategy to get our economy open and freedoms back faster in the long term,” Ardern said. (More New Zealand stories.)