Councils rebel over fireworks ‘disaster’

Sydney’s midnight fireworks spectacular will go ahead on New Year’s Eve but many revellers will not be able to party on the harbour.

Fireworks are seen at Sydney Harbour. Picture: Ryan Fowler

Sydney’s midnight fireworks spectacular will go ahead on New Year’s Eve but many revellers will not be able to party on the harbour foreshore, even if the state government eases restrictions.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian hopes to be able to reveal what the city’s New Year’s Eve plans look like on Monday, or Tuesday at the latest, but some councils have already taken crowd control into their own hands.

Several have closed foreshore parks on New Year’s Eve, expressing anger at the NSW government for providing no directions or plans for management of crowds and no contact tracing capacity.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian at St Leonards on Sunday. Picture: Monique Harmer

Large red signs warn inner-west Balmain residents that their foreshore parks, which attract tens of thousands of revellers, will be closed on New Year’s Eve because of state government COVID-19 restrictions. Inner West mayor Darcy Byrne said: “Given the current outbreak and lack of planning, we just can’t run the risk of having big crowds gathering in our parks becoming a superspreader event.”

At present, plans are to have two zones set up around Sydney Harbour on New Year’s Eve, with entry to an inner Green Zone restricted to residents, workers and restaurant patrons with a special pass and an outer Yellow Zone where “people gathering in these areas in large numbers may be moved on by police”.

Mr Byrne said the decision to lock Sydneysiders out of the city with a ticketing system was “a ­recipe for disaster” for neighbouring councils with partygoers likely to mass in places like Balmain.

“They’ve issued an open invitation and it could result in 2021 beginning with an outbreak of the virus we’ve been fighting for all of 2020. What we really need is a COVID-safe plan, any pub or bar opening on New Year’s Eve would have to have contact tracing and a plan — it’s bizarre the government is so complacent about the management of crowds,” he said.

Meanwhile, Waverley Council in the city’s east said it had cancelled its Dudley Page Reserve Dover Heights New Year’s Eve event and would have police pat­rolling its parks and beaches to deter rule-breakers.

Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne. Picture: AAP

Nearby Woollahra Municipal Council also closed its harbour foreshore vantage points near Dumaresq Reserve in Rose Bay from 5pm on New Year’s Eve, and will enforce a dry zone.

Also in doubt are special New Year’s Eve events for health and frontline workers, and those at the Sydney Opera House for “Local Heroes”.

While many CBD restaurants will be open for the event, a return to the 4sq m rule means most will operate at limited capacity.

The conduct of partygoers at Bronte Beach and Byron Bay at the weekend has raised further concern about easing restrictions for gatherings in the holiday ­period, although crowds at most Sydney beaches on Sunday observed social distancing.

The Premier announced on Sunday morning seven new locally acquired COVID-19 cases from 24,000 tests, with six linked to the northern beaches cluster.

The number of cases associated with the Avalon cluster stands at 122, but health authorities are concerned about a number of “unlinked” mystery cases across Sydney with no clear source, including a northern beaches firefighter in his 20s who went to the Belrose Hotel on the outer edges of the region.

The Fire Brigade Employees Union said the firefighter returned a negative test days before he gave a positive result, sparking fears of a false negative. Health authorities could not confirm this.

The Australian understands the Dee Why, Crows Nest and Beecroft fire stations were taken off line for several hours at the weekend pending test results.

Suburbs including Balmain, Rozelle and Drummoyne are among venues added to the NSW Health coronavirus alerts list.