Surrey city councilor warns partiers to follow COVID-19 rules as groups flock to Crescent Beach

SURREY (NEWS 1130) — Despite COVID cases dropping in B.C., a Surrey city councillor says it’s not a reason for people to get too comfortable and ignoring public health rules.

Councillor Linda Annis says partiers have been flooding Crescent Beach in recent weeks, lighting bonfires and prompting noise complaints from neighbours.

She says given how hard the Fraser Health region was hit by the virus, it’s not the time to slip up.

“The problem at Crescent Beach has been challenging at the best of times,” she says.

“I think we’re all getting a bit of COVID fatigue. We’re wanting to get out. We’re wanting to go see our friends and family again. And we’re almost there. But we’re not there yet.”

“People need to be mindful and still practice all of the things that [B.C.’s Provincial Health Officer] Dr. Bonnie Henry is asking us to do. So that we can get through this pandemic as quick as possible.”

The Fraser Health region, along with Vancouver Coastal, continue to record the highest case numbers during the daily counts.

On Friday, out of the 180 people infected with the virus in the province, 107 of those cases were recorded in the Fraser Health region.

“We need to get through this together. Surrey was hit very, very hard with COVID. And we’re doing all sorts of mass vaccinations to help get through this problem more quickly. But staying at home is absolutely critical or staying within your bubble,” Annis says. “Or we’re going to find ourselves back where we were before.”

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RCMP have been out enforcing parking lot access to parks and beaches as well.

Just last week, a man managed to lodge his car between boulders at the Blackie Spit parking lot, as he attempted to get his car from the closed lot by driving through the pedestrian walkway.

“We all need to be following the rules, and we need to be accountable for our behaviour. If the park closes at 10:00, people need to be out of the park at 10:00. There’s no special exemptions. If your car is still in the lot, you need to just leave it there and find your way home some other way,” Annis warns.

Earlier this month, during targeted traffic enforcement RCMP officers and the Traffic Unit, out of 300 vehicle checks, 20 violation tickets were issued for a variety of motor vehicle act offences.

Two people were arrested for weapons offences.

“I would say to those people that ‘they need to stay home, this is not the time to be going partying at Crescent beach, or having fires there. The police are doing the best that they can to keep things in order there, as are our bylaw officers, but their time should be better spent doing what they need to be doing. And that’s keeping us safe in the city of Surrey.'”

Annis is calling on people who are feeling the COVID-fatigue to keep adhering to public health orders for just a bit longer to get through the pandemic.

“We need to get through this pandemic together. We’re not at a place where we can be gathering in large crowds just yet, let alone, having fires on the beach, and staying after the parking lot is closed.'”