SA border closure will have ‘massive’ Murrayville impact

BEING just 24 kilometres from the South Australian state line, Murrayville Hotel Motel licensee Darryl Lewis relies heavily on interstate holiday-makers looking for that outback experience.

But the decision of the South Australian Premier Steven Marshall to close that state’s borders to all non-essential traffic and Victoria’s unprecedented shutdown of non-essential services has left Mr Lewis in a state of flux.

The South Australian lockout begins at 4pm on Tuesday in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus and anyone entering the state will be required to enter self-isolation for 14 days.

Mr Lewis followed the Victorian guidelines and closed the doors to the pub at noon on Monday for the first time since he took over in 2013.

• South Australia to close border: What it means for you

The caravanners, day trippers and weekenders are passing through the town like never before, only this time they’re not stopping.

“There’s a few caravans going through, but I guess they’re all heading home because of the 4pm cut off tomorrow,” Mr Lewis said.

“The town’s eerily quiet … it’s as dead as.

“It’s going to bugger up tourism incredibly.”

Mr Lewis said the border closure would have a “massive” impact on his business and he had already been forced to lay off kitchen and cleaning staff.

“I’m just going to have to do everything myself, that’s if there is anything to do,” he said.

“I had a group of 14 booked in Friday night to come out and do the desert run with their bikes and they have pulled the pin because they come from Berri,” he said.

“I also had three other groups coming up in early April and that’s 26 people per night staying in my pub for accommodation and obviously meals and drinks and everything else.

“They come here because of the desert and get their bikes and four-wheel drives out and have a bit of fun and I’ve lost that business.

“It’s a lot of money down the bloody drain.”

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Mr Lewis said he was on Monday still trying to get his head around the closure rules and whether he was able to open his doors for accommodation and takeaway alcohol.

“I’ve had to shut the bar and that’s the first time that I haven’t been able to open the doors,” he said.

“But we’re still going to need some trade to pay for everything.

“Considering my bottleshop is inside the hotel I’m not sure if I can still leave a door or something open to show people that I am open.

“You can shut some things down with power that you don’t need to operate to save costs, but you’ve still got to run your fridges and freezers.”

• COVID-19 response: Which businesses can and can’t open

Arrangements will be put in place in areas in regional South Australia near the border to address the high levels of traffic between two communities close to the border for various reasons.

Those affected will be allowed to move within these communities once they have been identified.

Mr Lewis said Murrayville residents relied on the nearby South Australian town of Pinnaroo for fuel and shopping.

“We can still go to Pinnaroo and grab stuff because we don’t have fuel here (in Murrayville) which is a big problem,” he said.

“But probably the one place that you don’t want to be at is a service station because it’s going to be a central point with buses coming through, that’s why it would be good to have some bowsers in this town because everyone needs fuel.

“Things are not too flash, but I’m not the only one in the same boat.

“The one thing this is going to let me do is clean up my office and a few other things, but I’d rather be putting my fingers on the till.”