“The first thought I had after the news came was what about my son’s school? We had spent the last entire week collecting his school items, going over the lists again and again, and now I had to explain my son why the schools won’t be opening, yet again,” says concerned mother Preeti Soni from Perth.
Key Highlights
- Perth, Peel and South West areas of WA went into a lockdown on Sunday
- Schools to remain closed until next week
- Children and parents have been eagerly waiting for schools to reopen
Perth went into a five-day lockdown on Sunday after a hotel quarantine security guard attended more than a dozen venues while infected with COVID-19. Authorities are worried because they suspect him to be infected by the highly contagious UK strain. A DNA genomic fingerprinting is underway to determine this.
“I and my husband have full-time jobs," Preeti said.
"We had made no arrangements for daycare for our son. He had been suffering from 'flu for the past few days, so daycare centres were out of the question. It became a bit of a problem, but we were able to manage it in the end.”
West Australian Premier Mark McGowan called for a five-day lockdown for metropolitan Perth and two nearby regions after a COVID-19 hotel quarantine breach. Source: AAP
Meanwhile as the news of the lock down came, people entered yet another bout of frenzied buying.
Preeti says, “We were about to go to the shops on Sunday, but when the news came, we re-evaluated our list and narrowed it down to essentials. For now, the lockdown is for five days only, so we made a list of things we would need over these five days.”
Preeti is the admin of a Facebook page called Indians in Perth which has thousands of followers.
She thinks social media posts and pictures sometimes influence this panic behaviour.
“People see pictures of empty aisles and long queues on social media and tend to think that most of the essential supplies would be over before they could get some. This triggers panic buying,” she says.
Preeti believes that such behaviour takes away resources from those who actually need it.
“The supermarkets are full," she says.
"The pharmacies have supplies in abundance. All we need to go out is a mask. Masks are readily available and can be made with handkerchiefs too. We need to keep calm.”
Despite all the hassle, she believes that this was the right decision to be taken by the Government.
“We were discussing this amongst friends, and all of us appreciate our Premier Mark McGowen to have taken this timely action. He has been protecting the state for the past 10 months. If more cases come, the lockdown might be extended, but let's not forget these steps are to protect us in the long run. I stand with my government completely,” she concludes.
People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others. Check your jurisdiction's restrictions on gathering limits. If you are experiencing cold or flu symptoms, stay home and arrange a test by calling your doctor or contact the Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080. News and information is available in 63 languages at sbs.com.au/coronavirus
Please check the relevant guidelines for your state or territory: NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, Northern Territory, ACT, Tasmania
