RIVERLANDERS are calling for COVID-19 restrictions to stay in place for the time being, despite the region now being free of confirmed active cases.
In a poll conducted by the Murray Pioneer, more than 1200 respondents said it was too soon to look at relaxing
COVID-19 restrictions.
While the number of cases in the Riverland has remained relatively low, with fewer than seven total cases confirmed in the region, Barmera man Malcolm Todd was one of four coronavirus-related deaths in South Australia.
Sandi Todd, Malcolm’s wife, told the Murray Pioneer she believed restrictions should remain in effect to avoid the virus re-emerging.
“I can understand that we need to (lift restrictions) and I know we are going to have some really tough years as far as the economy is concerned,” she said.
“But it worries me if it happens too quick and it starts up again.”
“I would like to see zeros everywhere – no more cases and no one else dying – and then when we get to that point we can start very gradually going back to normal.
“It just worries me when people are still contracting it and there’s people out there with it that if we go back to normal too quickly we’ll just go backwards.
“But you would like to think that the powers that be know what they are doing.”
Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network Wayne Champion said he was encouraged by the cautious attitude of the community.
“As we know, anyone could be COVID-positive without even knowing it, particularly in the first few days after being exposed to it,” he said.
“Here in the Riverland we are close to the border with Victoria and New South Wales, so there’s a risk of importing it from interstate, and there’s also still some active cases in South Australia.
“It just needs for someone to drive from interstate, sign the declaration that they will self-isolate and not do so, go out and pass it to someone else, and then it’s out of control again, so vigilance is important here.
“Your safety and the safety of everyone that you care about depends on your ability to protect yourself from COVID-19.
“Things like hand hygiene, appropriate social distancing, self-isolation and getting yourself tested are essential to ensuring the safety of your friends and those around you as well as yourself.”
At a press conference on Monday, the state’s chief public health officer Professor Nicola Spurrier said the Government would begin looking into adjusting restrictions in South Australia.
“We need to do this in a very staged and sensible way, looking at the evidence from around the world,” she said.
“I don’t want to see a situation like has been experienced in Singapore, where it was a country who were doing very well, but once they started lifting restrictions, they have now had an increased number of cases.
“I do appreciate that Singapore is not the same as South Australia, but we just have to be very mindful that we do it in a very sensible, graduated way and we keep a close eye on the number of cases over that period of time.
“I am the same as you – keen to get back to a normal way of life, but we just need to make sure we have the balance right.”
Ms Spurrier said the return of school sport and the easing of restrictions on weddings and funerals were examples of measures that would be looked at first.
“We’ll be looking at the sorts of activities that are low in risk in terms of transmission first, and we’ll be looking at adjusting those first, giving it a period of time, and looking at another tranche of restrictions and making those adjustments,” she said.
Earlier this week, the Federal Government began to ease restrictions on elective surgery, with the State Government establishing an expert surgical advisory group to guide the recommencement in South Australia.