Lockdown Extended In Regional NSW – Resorts to Remain Closed Until At Least September 11
Mountainwatch | Reggae Elliss
In a blow to local businesses, alpine communities and the ski resorts, the NSW government announced today that it was extending the state-wide lockdown until midnight, Friday September 10. If the lockdown is lifted then, that will leave three weeks left in the season, but for the local economy it will be case of the horse having already bolted.
During the press conference the Premier said that while the number of cases in regional NSW had stabilised, but western NSW, where there were 35 new cases, remained an area of concern.
“Given that acute situation in western NSW and Dubbo particular, the regional lockdown will be extended to all of regional NSW until at least midnight Friday 10th September,” said Premier Berejiklian.
“We do appreciate there are many communities in the regions that don’t have any cases, that have never had any cases and they are really wanting to come out of lockdown, but as a precaution the health advise says we should extend the lockdown to all of regional NSW until Friday 10th September.”
Deputy Premier and local member for Monaro John Barilaro also cited the increasing numbers in western NSW as influencing the decisions
“The decision to extend the lockdown is one to protect communities and protect the regions,” Mr Barilaro said. “We are sitting on a knife edge, and it is a tinderbox ready to explode and I do apologise for those communities that don’t have cases today, but I put it this way, the reason you may not have cases is because of the restrictions in place minimising movement because we know we are very interconnected community in regional rural NSW.”
He expressed concern about sewage fragments of the virus that causes COVID-19 in treatment plants in Tamworth, Merimbula, Cooma and Brewarrina. While that doesn’t confirm any cases in those areas, Mr Barilaro said that “It does mean that people must be vigilant, even if you’ve got the slightest sniffle, please go get tested.”
If the lockdown does end on September 11, the snow reports will be able to open, and Thredbo has released a statement saying it plans to open for skiing and snowboarding as soon as it is able to.
“While we are incredibly disappointed to see the temporary closure of our resort, we are committed to playing our part in ensuring the health and safety of our guests, teams and our community. We will continue to monitor the situation and are working closely with NSW Health.
“We plan to reopen as soon as we are able to and look forward to welcoming our guests back to the mountain soon,” said Stuart Diver, Thredbo Resort General Manager.
Perisher’s statement said: “The announcement of the regional lockdown extension is more difficult news for our Perisher community, guests and employees. It’s a very uncertain time for the whole region and sadly our lifts will have to remain closed until at least 10 Sep. We encourage everyone to stay safe and do their bit, so we can all get out of lockdown as soon as possible,” said Pete Brulisauer, Chief Operating Officer Australian and Perisher.
For businesses in the resorts, Jindabyne and other towns in the Snowy region, the extension is another setback in what has been a very challenging winter. Most businesses suffered a dramatic drop in turnover when Sydney went into lockdown in late June, missing the crucial school holiday trade, and with fewer visitors to the region in July and August it has been a steady decline since.
The loss of income incurred from having to close the doors from mid-August to mid-September will be difficult for many small businesses to absorb. The story is the same in Victoria where the resorts are closed for the third time this season and the current lockdown is for at least another week.
Unfortunately any turnaround is months away as October and November is the quietest period of the year in the alpine regions in both states. It will be a tough couple of months before tourists return to the region, hopefully, at Christmas.
