Coronavirus: NSW-VIC repeat border offenders fined, alerts over COVID sewage
Two men have been charged for attempting to sneak into NSW three times in two days, meanwhile, health officials have issued warnings to residents in Sydney’s southwest and the Hawkesbury over COVID sewage.
NSW
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Two men have been charged after allegedly trying to sneak into NSW three times over the course of two days.
Police stopped a vehicle on the Monaro Highway, Lords Hill, at 11am on Saturday October 3 after the occupants of the car allegedly evaded a checkpoint to enter the state.
The two men, aged 41 and 52, were issued with $1000 fines after being given warnings the previous day for attempting to enter NSW without a valid permit.
They were directed to return to Victoria.
At 9.15pm, the men defied advice and allegedly tried to enter NSW once again through a checkpoint at Hayden Bog and Lower Bendoc roads.
They were caught, returned to Victoria and issued with court attendance notices.
The following day, police were called to Malabar Headland after receiving complaints that a large party was taking place.
Upon arrival, officers found up to 80 people in attendance.
The organiser of the event, a 31-year-old man, was issued with a $1000 fine.
Others fined over the weekend include a licensed Ballina premises, over social distancing concerns and two Cockle Bay Wharf venues and a Lismore venue after they all failed to effectively implement a COVID-19 safety plan.
NO NEW CASES IN NSW
No new locally acquired coronavirus cases were detected in NSW yesterday, taking the state to an 11-day streak of no community transmission.
However almost a dozen overseas travellers in hotel quarantine were diagnosed with the disease in the 24 hours to 8pm on Monday night.
The cases were detected in 5,385 tests – up from 4,789 the day before.
Meanwhile, sewage testing has discovered fragments of the virus in treatment plants at North Richmond and West Camden, sparking a new call for residents of Hawkesbury and South Western Sydney to get tested for the virus.
The presence of the virus in sewage could mean people have contracted the virus but have not come forward for testing.
However, NSW Health’s Dr Richard Broome said the presence of COVID fragments in sewage could just show the presence of people who have recovered from the virus.
“People who have previously been infected can continue to ‘shed’ virus fragments into the sewage system for up to four weeks after they have recovered,” Dr Broome said
A spate of suburbs have been identified for closer scrutiny following traces of the virus being found in sewage.
In South Western Sydney, NSW Health is looking closely at the suburbs of Belimba Park, Bickley Vale, Bow Bowing, Brownlow Hill, Camden, Camden Park, Camden South, Carrington Park, Catherine Field, Cawdor, Cobbitty, Currans Hill, Elderslie, Ellis Lane, Gledswood Hills, Glenmore, Grasmere, Gregory Hills, Harrington Park, Kirkham, Mount Annan, Mount Hunter, Minto, Minto DC, Minto Heights, Narellan, Narellan DC, Narellan Vale, Nattai, Orangeville, Oran Park, Raby, Rossmore, Spring Farm, St Andrews, Smeaton Grange, The Oaks and Varroville.
Areas of interest in the Hawkesbury include Agnes Banks, Bowen Mountain, Grose Vale, Grose Wold, Hobartville, Londonderry, North Richmond, Richmond, Richmond Lowlands, Tennyson, The Slopes and Yarramundi.
‘BUILD A WALL’: NORTH SHORE LOCALS’ BEACH SOLUTION
Building a wall and installing video cameras on busy days are some of the ideas from locals in one of Sydney’s poshest suburbs to keep crowds flocking to nearby beaches.
A combination of blue skies, warm temperatures and a public holiday was the perfect storm which saw thousands visit Sydney’s beaches on Monday, forcing many councils to issue warnings about crowd numbers.
Photos of beachgoers sent chins wagging on community Facebook groups with locals concerned about the number of people at Balmoral Beach and the rubbish they left behind.
“We need to build a wall! No one past Neutral Bay,” one user posted in the Mosman Living group.
Another person suggested a more 1984-style idea: “Video cameras on busy days. High fines. Ranger control. People must be informed,” they said.
Mosman councillor Simon Menzies responded to the complaints and said the council will discuss a beach management plan for this summer.
“Managing waste on collection days like today is never easy. Even more bins may reduce the problem but the real challenge is getting more visitors to actually use them, rather than littering,” he said.
“At a council meeting to be held tomorrow night (Tuesday) we are discussing a summer beach management plan during the pandemic. I will waste the issue of waste management in the hope that some fine tuning of the system can take place to minimise the negative impacts caused by high visitor numbers.
15 CASES IN VICTORIA, ONE DEATH
Victoria has recorded 15 new coronavirus cases with the all-important 14-day metro average now falling below 11.
The state also recorded one new virus deaths, taking the total number of deaths since the start of the pandemic to 807.
The 15 new infections in the past 24 hours have dropped Melbourne’s metropolitan 14-day average to 10.6. On Monday it was 11.6
That figure must be around five for the State Government to consider reopening the city.
WHERE YOU CAN DRINK ON THE FOOTPATH THIS SUMMER
Sydneysiders will be dining alfresco on footpaths, streets and in parking spaces from next weekend as part of the state government’s plan to help businesses thrive amid social distancing measures.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal hospitality venues in The Rocks will be allowed to expand into more public outdoor space by October 16, with the iconic Sydney location the first to benefit from changes implemented by the government’s “Alfresco Taskforce”.
It’s expected that up to 20 venues will benefit from new temporary licence conditions, allowing them to make the most of outdoor public spaces including footpaths and roads.
Parts of George St which recently closed to cars will also embrace the alfresco trade, with the initiative expected to be rolled out to other council areas by the end of the year.
At the Glenmore Hotel in The Rocks, patrons will be able to enjoy a pub meal or a round of drinks in what would normally be a parking lane outside the venue from next Friday, October 16. The alfresco space will boost the pub’s COVID-safe capacity by up to 30 additional seats.
“As we’re approaching summer now with this beautiful warmer weather it’s just an awesome opportunity for us to be able to provide more alfresco dining options for our customers,” W. Short Hospitality managing director Jennifer Russell said. “I think this is an important first step to recognise the opportunity and potential that Sydney has to really activate these beautiful outdoor areas.”
The outdoor dining boost comes ahead of a raft of measures aiming to get more people back into the ailing CBD and surrounding suburbs.
For the first time in 11 years a freeze on new liquor licences in Kings Cross will be lifted on December 1 allowing new bars to apply to open without needing to buy a licence from an existing venue.
“This summer is one of the most important we’ve ever faced,” Customer Service Minister Victor Dominello said.
“In a COVID safe way we have to pull whatever levers we can to help the economy, help jobs and help our hospitality industry.”
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