The daughter of a man who visited a Wellington cafe while waiting on the results of a positive coronavirus test says she's worried for his mental health.



Milk Crate, on Ghuznee St in Te Aro, has closed after it was visited by the man on Saturday morning.

The man, in his 60s, arrived in Wellington at 12:05am on Saturday from Brisbane on Air New Zealand flight 828, and was informed of his positive result later that morning. However by that stage, he had already gone to the cafe to meet his son.

The man became New Zealand's seventh confirmed case of COVID-19. He requires no further medical treatment and is self-isolating in Wellington.

His daughter, who spoke to Newshub, said it's been a hard time for the family - and especially tough on her father, who she said "did everything right" after finding out he'd tested positive.

"As you can imagine, this has been a really hard time for our family - especially my father. I am worried for his mental health.

"I think a very interesting comment should be made about the repercussions of this naming and shaming - it was inevitable it was going to spread, and unfortunately we have been caught up in the early reported cases.

"He had no symptoms and only got checked out of protocol after returning from a funeral overseas. Never ever did we actually think this would happen.

"We have tried to do everything right from the minute we found out. My parents were just looking forward to seeing their son."

The Ministry of Health said on Saturday it was checking with its Australian counterparts to work out what advice was provided to the man prior to travelling.

Meanwhile Milk Crate says it will reopen when it is "absolutely certain it is safe to do so".

"Health officials have assured us that the risk of the virus spreading on this occasion is very low, and we’ve been given the all-clear to continue trading from the Wellington Regional DHB," Milk Crate said in a statement to media.

"But we feel we have a duty of care to our staff and our community and have elected to shut and take extra precautions.

"If you were in the café on Saturday between the hours of 11:00am and 11:30am and believe you may have had close and prolonged contact with the man, we strongly encourage you to phone Healthline."

Milk Crate says it is trying to be proactive in managing the situation, and urges its customers to be patient as they assess the risk.

"Your support has kept this café going for 15 years, and we thank you for your custom and understanding," it said.

"We will reopen only when we are absolutely certain it is safe to do so and look forward to seeing you then."