Covid-19: New cases soar by more than 3000 in a single day, reaching 9629

New cases of Covid-19 have soared by more than 3000 in a single day, rising from 6498 on Monday to 9629 on Tuesday, the Ministry of Health says. There are also 493 people in hospital, and 24 people with the virus have died in the period since April 14, the ministry said. The seven-day rolling average of community case numbers on Tuesday is 7246 – a rise of about 32 per cent on the same time last year. University of Canterbury professor and Covid-19 modeller Michael Plank said the increasing trend in cases over the past week made a second wave of Omicron “likely”.