Watch: This is what SA’s lockdown looks like in some parts of Boksburg

It appears during day one of the 21-day lockdown, the vast majority of Boksburg residents heeded President Cyril Ramaphosa call to remain in their homes, and these measures form part of the State’s weapons used to fight against the coronavirus.

March 27, 2020

Fanie Mthupha 2 minutes read

Shoppers queue round the block and parking lot as people were waiting to get into SPAR to buy food and essentials. One of the concerns raised by some shoppers was that some people were not keeping a safe distance from each other as recommended.

The president decreed these new measures to slow the spread of the virus on March 23 – and in essence they prevent people from going out except to buy food or essentials, visit the doctor or get to jobs declared as essential services.

As the country’s 60 million citizens enter the new reality on day one of the lockdown, the Advertiser visited several normally bustling spots and observed that many people remained in their homes.

The main roads remained fairly quiet, with only a few light passenger vehicles and delivery vans and trucks going by every now and then.

However, long lines of people, mostly from the nearby informal settlements, were seen queuing round the parking lot at Witfield SPAR.

Operators at SPAR, however, made sure all their customers were sanitised at the door before entering the building.

Sanitising shoppers was among the measures taken by Witfield SPAR management to curb the spread of the new coronavirus.

They also restricted the number of shoppers in their store to 50 people at a time. Shoppers were also reminded that supermarkets would remain open throughout the lockdown and were advised to only shop when they need to, instead of panic-buying.

In the stretch of Main Street in Witfield, most of the businesses remained closed, except for SPAR, pharmacies and the filling stations.

On Thursday, large numbers of Ekurhuleni residents were seen rushing to local and long-distance taxi ranks and others got in their cars and travelled to different destinations to beat the midnight deadline. Those who were left behind stormed local shopping centres and cleared shelves of some of the staple foods and some medical equipment, including masks and sanitisers.

The panic-buying we saw in recent days after the imposed restrictions generally settled down on Friday, with most customers buying a few essential items from the businesses that remained operational during the lockdown.

The nationwide lockdown saw authorities imposing tough restrictions on public life. These include banning of mass gatherings, closing of non-essential public and private organisations, sealing of borders and controlling the movement of people and goods.

Authorities announced that thousands of members of SAPS and SANDF would be deployed to enforce the lockdown. Anyone found outside their home is asked to justify the reason why they are not at home.

Anyone found to be flouting the restrictions risks six months’ imprisonment or a heavy fine.

By March 27, there were more than 540 000 confirmed cases and over 24 000 deaths worldwide, with South Africa recording over a 1 000 confirmed cases. According to other media reports, South Africa registered its first Covid-19 deaths, on the same day the country’s lockdown kicked in.

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