In New South Wales, Australia, police have fined two men who broke COVID-19 lockdowns to sunbathe nude on a national park beach where a deer scared them, causing them to flee into the forest where they got lost and had to be rescued.
"It's difficult to legislate against idiots," NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said. "Clearly, by putting people at risk by leaving home without a proper reason, and then getting lost in a national park, diverting important resources away from the health operation, they should be embarrassed."
From the police statement:
About 6pm (Sunday 27 June 2021), the men called for assistance after becoming lost in bushland during a visit to a remote beach.
Police Rescue assisted by the State Emergency Service, NSW Ambulance and Polair responded to the area, locating a 30-year-old man naked and carrying a backpack on the walking track near Lady Wakehurst Drive.
After a further search, a 49-year-old man, partially clothed, was also located. The men told police they were on a nearby beach when they ran into bushland after being startled by a deer.
They were taken to St George Police Station and issued $1000 PINs for breaching the current public health order prohibiting those from Greater Sydney travelling outside the region.
image: Royal National Park's Era beaches by Jenny Mealing (CC BY 2.0)
