WATCH: Queuing from east to west as liquor stores reopen
Hundreds of residents from across Pretoria flocked to their nearest bottle store to buy alcohol for the first time since the lockdown was implemented in March.
Extra long queues and full parking lots were at the order of the day on Monday, as hundreds of residents from across Pretoria flocked to their nearest bottle store to buy alcohol for the first time since the lockdown was implemented in March.
South Africa was put on lockdown on 21 March and the sale of alcohol and cigarettes were banned as health measures in the fight against Covid-19.
At Ultra Liquors in Silverton in the east of Pretoria, eager customers stood in long queues, all at 1.5 meters apart, as they patiently awaited their turn to enter the shop.
Some of the customers had to park on sidewalks because of so many customers flocking to the stores first thing Monday morning.
Jurie Horn, manager at the PnP at Waverly Plaza, said the re-opening of their liquor store went “very well”.
“No problems were reported.”
Horn said about 15 people on average would be in the queue outside, while only seven customers were allowed in at a time.
In the north of Pretoria, Barry Muller, manager at the Ninapark Spar said he expected more customers.
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“The re-opening went well and we can’t complain.”
He further said they were grateful the liquor store could re-open.
“It’s good for business.”
In the west of Pretoria, Tino Caronba, manager at Van der Hoff Save More Liquor, said the shop has been very busy since early this morning.
“We are happy to report, everyone is wearing masks, being sanitised and scanned as they enter the shop. So far, so good.”
Not everyone were as enthusiastic as some residents responded negatively to the re-opening of the liquor stores.
“There’s no money for food, but just look at the queues at the liquor stores,” Ilze Moolman Croucamp, a Pretoria resident said on social media.
Other residents, however, described the re-opening of the stores as approaching “normalcy”.
“Back to a bit of normalcy,” Lida Oosthuizen posted with a photo of her beverages that included beer and a bottle of wine.
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