A local business owner said he had to close his doors after a person came in immediately after travelling abroad “and thought it would be a good idea to go shopping first” before going into self-isolation at a cabin.

The business owner, who said he had been following all government instructions around COVID-19, was disheartened by the person’s behaviour and attitude.

“They were jovial about it,” he said. “Who knows how many are walking among us that are not being responsible?”

Clovechok said those returning from trips must self-isolate and that anyone who doesn’t is being “so, so irresponsible.”

People have been calling him to report on risky behaviour they’re seeing. One concerned resident called to tell him: “I was just following some folks into the grocery story … and they were hacking and sneezing on everything.”

Clovechok said it’s unacceptable to put others at risk and that some visitors last weekend behaved in ways “not conducive to keeping our full-time residents safe.”

“In order for us to escape what China and Italy have gone through, we have to practice (physical distancing). Susan and I, we’re hunkered down in Dutch Creek. We’re obviously working from our phones, working from our computers, because it’s busy. But we’re not interacting with people because that’s the responsible thing to do. We’re getting out going for walks and taking the dogs and saying ‘hi’ to people but keeping a safe distance apart,” he said.

Staying home can also include second homes, despite a massive disagreement on social media that led the Pioneer to ask Provincial health officer Dr. Bonny Henry on Saturday about those visiting secondary homes in resort communities.

“If somebody has a private vehicle and wants to be in their second home versus their home, that should be fine as long as they’re not out and mingling with others,” she said. (Emphasis added.)

Clovechok is begging visitors to please stay home unless they’re going to be as cautious as his neighbours, where the only evidence that they’re home is that their vehicle is in their driveway. Even if visitors are careful, extra humans are a concern.

“Our boat is built for 9,500 (people),” he said. “We can’t have the boat sinking.”