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By Sakhiseni Nxumalo 
2h ago
Durban – The KwaZulu-Natal government is toying with the idea of closing all beaches during the holiday season to combat the spread of increasing Covid-19 infections in the province.
The provincial MEC for Transport, Community Safety and Liaison, Bheki Ntuli, said he was in talks with the KZN Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu Health MEC about the possibility of closing the provincial beaches during the busy holiday period.
Ntuli spoke during a high-level meeting with all the heads of the law enforcement agencies in the province at the Pietermaritzburg Correctional Services Center.
Tourism stakeholders warned that if the decision to close KZN’s beaches during the peak holiday period were passed, it would be devastating for the tourism industry and lead to massive job losses.
The KZN legislature announced last week that all major events during the holiday season would be banned as part of plans to limit the spread of the coronavirus.
Ntuli said they were hopeful that KZN Prime Minister Sihle Zikalala would accept the proposal and consider their thinking.
“If we allow the beaches to operate during this festive season, we are not going to stop the spread of this Covid-19. We believe that if we close them, at least people are not going to die and we will be saving lives, “said Ntuli.
He acknowledged that tourists flock to the province to enjoy the sea breeze.
“However, there is no way we will allow them. We must begin to prioritize lives over joy. They will still rejoice after the festive season, ”Ntuli said.
Ntuli warned that if the beaches were allowed to function, people would become infected and possibly die.
“We are provoking an argument. We are going to meet with all the mayors from the north of the province to the South Coast ”, added Ntuli.
Speaking during the meeting, eThekwini Subway Police Chief Steve Middleton said on Sunday that beach capacity looked like 50% of December 16 capacity, which is one of the busiest days of the year. .
Middleton said that from a Covid-19 perspective it was absolutely horrible as people refused to get out of the water.
“We managed to remove them around 1.30 am. Effectively speaking, that was in contravention of Covid-19 regulations in any case, ”he said.
He said that in making the decision, the government should strive to strike a balance between saving lives and reviving the country’s economy.
“As much as we value the proposal, from a police perspective, it will affect the economy. However, I also want to point out that the biggest concern about this is the curfew, ”Middleton added.
Ntuli said they were aware of the economic impact of the beach closures but were concerned that the Durban metro police would not have the capacity to handle the crowds.
“At some point we thought of putting up some barricades along the beach that would only allow 50 people within a given area.
“However, whether the subway police could handle them is another matter,” Ntuli said.
EThekwini municipal spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela said there was a need to balance the issue of economy and visitor safety.
“As it is still a proposal, our city leadership will deliberate on the matter in full awareness that the province’s directive is that we must do everything possible to minimize the spread of the pandemic.
“Under no circumstances will we ignore the directive of our provincial government,” Mayisela said.
KZN provincial government spokesman Lennox Mabaso said the prime minister will address the matter on Friday when he announces the approaching of the province’s Covid-19 holiday season.
SA KZN Federated Hospitality Association President Brett Tungay said that if Zikalala decided to close the beaches, it would be devastating for the tourism industry in KZN.
Tungay said the industry was still struggling to recover from the tough lockdown that resulted in a loss of millions of rand. He said that if the beaches were closed, more businesses would be closed forever and the loss of jobs in the industry would be massive.
“This is the main business season of the year for the tourism industry in Durban, the South Coast and Ballito. If they make a stupid move like that, it would be devastating. That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. Closing the beach would be absolutely absurd, ”Tungay said.
“The tourism industry is fragile right now and something like this is going to push it to the limit.”
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