Coronavirus: Adelaide nightclubs fined for breaches, Brisbane revellers slammed ignoring rules

As Melbourne spent its first weekend in lockdown, revellers in other cities hit the town in droves – with police fining nightclubs for blatant breaches.

While Melburnians spent their first weekend back in lockdown, revellers in other Australian cities hit the town in droves – many ignoring COVID-safe rules to crowd into nightclubs.

South Australia Police conducted spot checks on 111 venues on Saturday, finding 10 had no coronavirus precaution plans in place.

Two nightclubs were fined for blatant breaches of public health measures, with officers snapping photographs of people shoulder-to-shoulder on dance floors.

In two images released, punters can be seen posing and smiling for the camera.

Zhivago nightclub on Currie Street in Adelaide’s CBD was whacked with a $5000 fine while the Tequila Sunrise youth hostel was pinged for its poor quarantine preparations, police said.

RELATED: Follow our live coronavirus coverage here

Zhivago nightclub in Adelaide was whacked with a fine for breaching strict coronavirus rules.

Zhivago nightclub in Adelaide was whacked with a fine for breaching strict coronavirus rules.

It comes as Brisbane club-goers were filmed flouting social distancing rules for the second weekend in a row, prompting warnings they were playing “Russian roulette” with their families’ lives.

Crowds of young people packed Fortitude Valley over the weekend, with hundreds seen lining up in queues and filing onto cordoned-off dance floors.

AMA Queensland president Chris Perry issued a stern warning, saying they were playing “Russian roulette” with their grandparents’ lives.

“If they want to see their parents and their grandparents dying very, very bad deaths, go ahead, be selfish,” Dr Perry told The Courier Mail.

“Nightclubs need to be told you need to have social distancing when customers are waiting outside.

“You need to have social distancing everywhere, at the bar and in lines, so you have people standing a metre-and-a-half apart when they’re queuing – or you get closed. It’s very simple.”

Crowds of young people packed Fortitude Valley over the weekend, with hundreds seen lining up in queues and filing onto cordoned-off dance floors. Picture: John Gass/Courier Mail

Some venues did not appear to abide by social distancing rules. Picture: John Gass/Courier Mail

Queensland recorded two new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, both of whom were people returning from overseas.

While pubs and clubs were allowed to reopen, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said dance floors were to remain closed and that people must continue to obey social distancing rules at these venues.

When asked what the point would be of going to a club without dancing, she said they “can listen to the music”.

“I understand some of them are putting in COVID-safe plans,” she said.

“I would encourage them to do that, because it’s a way that young people can still sit down and enjoy a meal.

“And hopefully it’ll get back to normal sometime.”

Ask if she actually expected nightclubs to open without a dance floor, the premier said, “that’s a matter for them.”

There are three remaining active cases across the state.

Queensland recorded two new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, both of whom were people returning from overseas. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

It comes after an establishment in Sydney’s east copped a hefty fine after punters were seen failing to distance themselves while lining up to get in.

RELATED: Sydney bar cops $5500 fine

Last week, a photo of a crowd queuing outside The Golden Sheaf Hotel in Sydney’s Double Bay went viral. The establishment subsequently copped a $5500 fine from NSW Liquor and Gaming.

The picture was reportedly taken at 9pm on Wednesday of up to 250 people waiting outside the pub without any obvious social distancing.

Last week, this photo of a crowd queuing outside The Golden Sheaf Hotel in Sydney’s Double Bay went viral. Source: Reddit

NSW Government advice on managing pubs during the pandemic states operators must “introduce strategies to manage gatherings that may occur outside the premises”.

The pub told news.com.au it worked with police to disperse the crowd and would employ extra security to ensure only 20 people at a time could line up outside the venue. It said it was the “collective responsibility” of staff and punters to stay safe.