The long-range forecast is for fair weather into the first week of the Easter holidays, and the States police chief Robin Smith said Islanders would see more officers on patrol this weekend and warned those out and about to expect to be stopped and engaged with.
Since the Island went into lockdown on Monday, 80 individuals have been issued ‘words of advice by officers’ and Mr Smith said several others, including one ‘establishment’, had been spoken to more than once.
On Friday, the number of confirmed cases rose to 118. There have been a total of two deaths. Health experts are predicting infections to double every three to five days on current models.
Lawmakers and the Attorney General are working in the background on the possibility of giving officers powers to issue on-the-spot fines, it has also emerged.
St Helier has displayed ‘stay at home’ messages across town on bins, in shop windows and on the electric noticeboard at Charing Cross.
Constable Simon Crowcroft said: ‘We need to remember that the government’s stay-at-home message is an instruction, not a request.’
Currently, under emergency legislation pushed through the States last week, the force have the power to remove people from public places and those guilty of flouting stay-at-home laws can be fined up to £1,000.
The government has said Islanders can leave their homes for up to two hours a day for exercise and are allowed to drive to locations for that.
Asked if the public would see patrols at beauty spots or even the use of drones for monitoring purposes, as in the UK, Mr Smith said: ‘We have seen inconsistencies in the UK about how these laws are applied. My view is that people should not travel for exercise – let’s not forget we want people to stay at home, so it’s always best where possible – and I know it’s not always possible – to exercise near your home. I know some people will need to travel to exercise and we will monitor that carefully.’
The government has launched a new Hometime Facebook page, sharing tips on how Islanders can spend the time and advice on how to look after their wellbeing. Durrell has relaunched its popular Go Wild Gorilla trail too – with a stay-at-home twist.
The charity has produced cut-out gorilla silhouettes which families are urged to design and display in their windows – creating pop-up trails for people to see when they are out exercising.
Several Islanders have asked if they can go fishing or paddleboarding or surfing within the two-hour time limit or, instead of exercising, sit on the beach.
Mr Smith added: ‘The weather forecast this weekend is good and Islanders will want to do exactly what they normally do. But you have heard over the last couple of weeks how important it is to stay
at home to save lives. So yes, you will see more police officers over the weekend. Yes, you may be stopped but we cannot enforce our way out of this. This is about public conscience, listening to advice and people playing their part to save the lives of Islanders.’
Mr Smith stressed enforcement would be a very last resort. ‘If people do not comply we will have to enforce but that would be very regrettable,’ he added.
John Searson, principal meteorological officer at Jersey Met, said: ‘The temperature is forecast to hit a high of 17˚C on Sunday, which is unusually warm for this time of year. I understand many Islanders may want to make the most of it and spend time outside. However, warm weather is no protection from coronavirus. If you are going out of the house during your two hours, think carefully about the best time and place to go. You don’t want to endanger yourself or others by going to popular areas, where you might compromise your two-metres social distance.’
The impact of stay-at-home rules on pressures in the home is already being felt too, Mr Smith said. He said a rise in domestic-abuse cases was ‘inevitable’ and a slight increase had already been seen.
- Late Friday afternoon, the government texted Islanders, urging them to stay at home despite the warm weather.
