Coronavirus: Checkpoints catch Aucklanders fleeing for Coromandel baches
Police at checkpoints around Auckland have already turned back people looking to head to their Coromandel holiday homes to escape lockdown.
Two officers from Ormiston Police Station in East Tamaki were stationed along Kawakawa-Orere Rd, a pinch point between Auckland and the Coromandel Peninsula.
One officer, who asked not to be named, said in the first hour of lockdown, most drivers were abiding by the rules, with only a handful being turned away.
“People are good, they know the rules, and when they’re asked to turn around, they turn around.”
One driver was wanting to get to his bach, but was turned back, the officer said.
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“We can’t allow that. No one out, no one in. There has to be a reasonable excuse,” he said. “I think people heading to their bach will be the biggest thing we’ll get here; people just trying to get out of Auckland.
“We'll be figuring out who’s telling the truth, who’s from Auckland and who’s trying to get out.”
The officers were both wearing full PPE and expected to have staff at the roadblock until the lockdown was lifted.
Earlier, officers huddled around maps and police cars lined the road on State Highway 1 south of Auckland as police prepared to enforce checkpoints.
On Tuesday, the Government announced it was moving Auckland into level 3 lockdown after four cases of Covid-19 emerged from one family, who had no known connection to overseas travel.
Police are be operating nine checkpoints at exit points just inside the regional boundaries, largely based on the Auckland supercity boundaries, from midday on Wednesday, Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said.
“We will be stopping vehicles and questioning drivers, but, as has been our approach through the Covid-19 response, our first focus will be on educating people and ensuring they are aware of the new restrictions.”
At one of the nine checkpoints on SH1 near the Bombay service stations, road policing sergeant Andrew Heath warned people to prepare for a traffic chokehold.
“It’s already heavily congested at the moment.
“If you can stay away from Bombay, please do.”
Police wouldn’t be using spikes and would not be checking licences or registrations, it was about safety, he said.
Checkpoints were being set up on the northern and southern off-ramps on SH1 and Heath said they would be asking people where they were going and what the purpose of their travel was.
He said if people were going to Auckland to visit friends, that was not appropriate at this time.
“Legitimate business people on essential business in the city will be allowed to go about their travel.”
Coster said staff had planned for the possibility of Covid-19 returning to the community, including the possibility of regional restrictions.
“Police will have a visibly higher presence across the region, with all three Tāmaki Makaurau Police District Commanders working together to respond the regional alert level 3.
“Once again, we are urging people to play their part, and we are relying on people to heed the message to go home and stay home.”
At a press conference on Wednesday, he said they could draw on the Defence Force to help at checkpoints and at present they had 40 police staff across the locations.
They would be speaking to people to check where they were travelling to and Coster recommended people bring evidence to prove where they lived to help pass through checkpoints smoothly.
All police station front counters in Tāmaki Makaurau were closed to the public with the exception of Henderson (Waitematā), College Hill (Auckland City) and the Counties Manukau Hub, which were all open 24/7, but with restricted access.