Shire of Ashburton facilities and services update

The Shire of Ashburton is continuing to follow monitor and follow advice from Federal and State Government in relation to COVID-19.

As stated over the weekend through federal government, the following facilities should now be closed until further notice:

Pubs, bars and registered and licenced clubs Gyms and indoor sporting venues Cinemas, entertainment venues, and casinos Cultural institutions including libraries, museums, art galleries Funerals in enclosed spaces. Excludes very small groups and where the 1 person per 4 square metre of floor space rule applies Large religious gatherings and places of worship

We are encouraging local and home businesses to follow the directives being given so that we can work together in reducing the spread of COVID-19.

Restaurants and cafes within the Shire are restricted to takeaway and privately owned gyms, indoor sporting venues are required to shut. Only essential service providers are allowed to enter aboriginal communities with fines of up to $50,000 will applying to those who breach this direction. Non-essential gatherings and travel are not recommended and domestic travel restrictions within Australia come into effect from tomorrow afternoon, Tuesday 24 March.

It is essential that any facilities that remain open adhere to the indoor gathering restrictions and social distancing measures and healthy hygiene habits.

The Shire services that remain OPEN include:

Our administration buildings remain open for customer service tasks, however we encourage community members to phone, email or get in touch with their local councillor where possible rather than visiting in person. Eftpos and card is the preferred method of payment. Our waste collection services and landfill sites will continue as normal at the time. Our parks and playgrounds remain open and our crews are providing two daily cleans and disinfectant activities at each playground in all of our towns. Our swimming pools remain open at this time and we strongly urge patrons to practice social distancing and healthy hygiene habits. Caravan Park in Onslow remains open with some conditions.

We have made the decision to CLOSE the following:

Aligning with the COVID-19 directives of Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Premier Mark McGowan we have closed all of our sporting venues and facilities effective Monday 23 March. These include: Clem Thompson Pavilion Tom Price Civic Centre, Area W, Tom Price Tom Price Community Centre Tom Price Recreation Centre excluding use for educational purposes Diamond Club Sports Facility Onslow MPC Paraburdoo CHUB Ashburton Hall, Paraburdoo Last week we made the difficult decision to cancel all Shire events and ask community members to be responsible with planning their own events. We will not be taking any further bookings at this time. All libraries will close however Paraburdoo, Pannawonica and Onslow community members will be able to access customer services at these locations only. All programming is cancelled until further notice.

Community members are reminded to practise healthy hygiene habits and maintain social distancing of no more than one person per four square metres.

Wash your hands with soap and water Cover your coughs and sneezes and dispose of tissues Avoid contact with others if you are unwell

We will continue to provide the community with updates and encourage you to refer to the Australian Department of Health, who are actively monitoring the outbreak. Updates and information are available from www.health.gov.au and healthywa.wa.gov.au.

For media information contact:

Alison Lennon - Manager Media and Communications, Shire of Ashburton

M: 0409 314 140 | E: [email protected]

More news articles