COVID SAFETY ON RANDWICK'S BEACHES

COVID SAFETY ON RANDWICK’S BEACHES

Things are going to be a bit different on the eastern beaches this summer, with COVID safety taking precedence. And these are the people who will be enforcing it.

Randwick Council’s lifeguards and rangers will be working alongside special beach ambassadors to ensure popular swimming locations like Coogee and Maroubra remain safe.

Also taking to the beach sands will be local police, who will be responsible for asking people to move on if beaches have to be closed, should that be deemed necessary due to overcrowding or other reasons.

Eastern Beaches Police Area Commander, Superintendent Rohan Cramsie, says visitors are urged to plan ahead and to expect “a different holiday experience” during the summer months this year.

Randwick Mayor Danny Said agrees. “There’s nothing more Sydney than a summer’s day out at the beach, but we all know that this summer is going to be different,” he says.

The council urges people heading to the beach this summer to follow these six steps:

1).  Check the COVID crowd capacity rating and live beach cams on www.randwick.nsw.gov.au before leaving home.
2).  Wear a mask while getting to the beach if social distancing isn’t possible.
3).  Keep a towel’s length (1.5m) apart from other beach goers.
4).  Leave the beach once you’ve had a swim;
5).  Visit outside of peak times such as during the week, early mornings and evenings; and
6).  Come back at a different time if the beach is busy.


Oh, and here’s seventh tip from Superintendent Cramsie – alcohol-swilling beach hoons are not welcome. He indicated that police are having a summer blitz on alcohol-fuelled anti-social activities, not just on the beaches but in and around licenced premises. 

Randwick Council’s website will be updated each day with a COVID Crowd Capacity rating giving beachgoers the opportunity to pick the time of day and best beach to attend.

Each beach will be rated in terms of its crowd capacity based on ensuring space for at least 1 person per 4 square metres.

Beach COVID Crowd Capacity ratings:

Quiet. Open and adequate space for social distancing.
Busy Open but crowd numbers are increasing.
Nearing capacity. Very busy. People are strongly advised not to visit and make alternative plans.
Closed. Do not visit. Safe COVID crowd numbers have now been exceeded.