HOLIDAYMAKERS and beachgoers alike in the Cape are reminded they will be fined and their alcohol confiscated if found drinking on the City’s beaches and other public spaces.
The City of Cape Town is expecting high traffic at shopping malls, tourist destinations and beaches as peak festive season approaches with the closure of schools and as workers across the City begin their annual leave.
“As people head down to the beach or other public spaces, they are reminded that the consumption of alcohol is prohibited, and not only will they be fined, but their alcohol will be confiscated too,” the City of Cape Town’s Mayco Member for Safety and Security JP Smith said on Tuesday.
Smith has called for holidaymakers to rather leave their alcohol at home in the interest of public safety due to booze being the underlying link to many incidents during the festive season.
He further believes the City’s alcohol impound facility will be stacked as early as next week.
“Our liquor impoundment facility has opened this week, and it will no doubt have amassed a sizeable collection of confiscated liquor by next week,” Smith went on to say.
Camps Bay SAPS Sergeant Phli told IOL on Tuesday the amount you can be expected to be fined depends on a number of factors including the amount of alcohol you have been found with.
Seasonal lifeguards across the city’s managed pools and certain beaches have joined the permanent lifeguards to assist in safety, as is the case each festive season.
According to the Cape Town Beaches Lifeguard Duty Schedule, lifeguards will be patrolling from 10am to 6pm.
This is the case for beaches at Clifton, Fish Hoek, Khayelitsha, Sea Point, St James and Strandfontein, to name but a few.
“I implore visitors to our beaches and swimming pools to please obey the instructions of lifeguards, to swim only in areas designated for bathing, and to keep an eye on their children at all times,” Cape Town’s Mayco Member for Community Services and Health, councillor Patricia van der Ross said.
The South African Weather Service told IOL on Monday that Cape Town, along with the rest of South Africa, is expected to have normal to above-normal rainfall this festive season which may deter beachgoers’ plans.
IOL