NELSON MANDELA BAY - TAKE NOTE! NMB MUNICIPALITY ISSUES STERN WARNING TO BEACHGOERS

The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality has noted with concern the illegal influx to our beaches by residents over the last few weeks and is calling on residents to refrain from breaking the COVID-19 National Regulations.

Following the outbreak of COVID-19, the City closed all beaches and public amenities in March in line with the guidelines as announced by the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma earlier this year.

The guidelines compelled the City to close all beaches, braai areas, swimming pools and other public amenities to curb the spread of the deadly virus.

NMBM Disaster Management Chairperson Shane Brown said despite the strict rules in place, many residents were now overcrowding the beaches or engaging in illegal gatherings along the beach.

“COVID-19 is not over, this new influx that is happening in our beaches especially during the weekends is shocking. Our main concern is the overcrowding in the beaches as this means social distancing might not be adhered to and people remove their masks possibly spreading the virus around. The regulations are very clear that beaches are off limits except for fishermen.”

“In Durban police officers had to chase people off the beach, we don’t want to get to that point but if people continue our law enforcement officers will take action against them. We are already seeing a decline in the number of infections and we certainly do not want to have a second wave of infections simply because we are careless in our actions. The second wave would be worse than the first one,” said Brown.

In accordance with Section 37 of the National Regulations, social gatherings are prohibited under Alert Level 3 except for funerals, a professional non-contact sports match (including only players, match officials, media and a medical crew). Religious institutions are allowed to hold services, workplaces are open for work purposes and auctions (subject to directives issued by the responsible Cabinet members) and also allowed under Alert Level 3 however all gatherings are limited to 50 people or less and adherence to social distancing and health protocols are imperative.

If residents fail to comply with the National Regulations, an enforcement officer may order everyone at the gathering to disperse. If residents refuse to disperse, the law enforcement officer may take appropriate action including arrests or detention.

NMBM would like to highlight that the following places and premises are closed to the public and gatherings at these places are prohibited:

•All beaches along the coastline within the jurisdiction of NMBM are closed for all activities except for recreational fishing. Residents may walk and run along the beachfront promenade whilst wearing a face mask and observing social distancing

• The Shark Rock Pier in Summerstrand

• Parks and Recreational Public Open Spaces except for the purpose of healthy lifestyle activities such as exercising

• Springs Resort in Uitenhage and Beach View Resort

• Braai facilities at Maitland’s and along marine drive and

• Toilet facilities along the beachfront.

The City would like to remind residents that there are no lifeguards present on all the beaches and should any incident occur, the City will not be held responsible.

The Beaches, Resorts and Events management sub directorate is appealing to residents to cooperate with the authorities and to not disregard the regulations as the fight against COVID-19 is not over yet.