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Katie Woolf spoke with Knotts Crossing Resort General Manager Joanna Pace after the resort was listed as an exposure site · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: But we're joined on the line right now by not
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: crossing resort general manager Joanna Pace. Good morning to you, Joanna.
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: Good morning. How are you today?
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Not too bad? Joanna? How are you guys going following
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: on from the situation that's unfolded over the last few days.
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: Yeah, with the hotel job to occupancy around fifty percent
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: really quickly through around twenty four hours, we're doing well.
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: The majority of ours, we had fight Staffer and Howard
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: Springs in five in isolation and the majority have got
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: their test back late last night and they're all negative,
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: which is fantastic.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: That is great to hear, and I know that we'll
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: all be hoping that this lockdown is going to lift
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: at midday today and that everybody is going to be
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: able to get back to normal operation. What have you
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: guys had to do in terms of, you know, following
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: on from from that person obviously arriving at the resort
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: on Sunday, what if you guys had to do in
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: terms of you know, like staff isolating and all that.
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: Look, we've been okay, We've had the environmental officer dictating
• 1:09
  Speaker 2: to us what we've needed to do in certainly with
• 1:11
  Speaker 2: the room, the guests had checked into which still hasn't
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: been touched, but we will have that completely cleaned once
• 1:18
  Speaker 2: we're allowed into that room. In regards to staffing, we're
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: always able to bounce back and not crossing. We still
• 1:24
  Speaker 2: have some staff on the ground that have been working
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: really hard to accommodate the guests that are still on
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: the property. So we've been providing breakfast, runch and dinner
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: room service to rooms, care packs for housekeeping requirements and
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: just yeah, using the staff on the ground that we're available,
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: and I've given them one hundred percent marks have been fantastic.
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: Well, that is good to hear. I know that earlier
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: in the week, you guys has been sort of questioning
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: why that positive case was allowed to travel before his
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: test results came back. It must have been a frustrating
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: situation for you.
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: I was frustrating. I was aware of that particular booking
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: for a couple of months. Now we knew about that booking.
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: It was a long term booking in a room. We're
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: unaware that the customer was coming in from America. We
• 2:11
  Speaker 2: note now that he's the central worker, probably doing something
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: related to defense here in the region. He's still a
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: very important customer to us. You know, I do feel
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: for him. I'm not one hundred percent sure if he's
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: done the right thing or if he was meant to
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: wait and Darln for those chapteres up.
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: Yeah, and I guess you know, this is a full
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: review that realistically the government's going to have to go
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: through and work out whether they do need to change
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: these processes in some way. So there, you know, we
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: don't wind up in another situation hopefully were with Darwin
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: and Catherine end up in a three day lockdown due
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: to one case due.
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: To one case.
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: Absolutely yeah, And I mean for you guys, Joanna, once
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: this lockdown does livet is it going to be sort
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: of back to business as usual?
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: Adam, Definitely back to business as usual. Not crossing a
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: result was trading at a really high, high level. We
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: had a lot of bookings coming in that has obviously
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: all just changed. So to be really working hard to
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: build the business back up again, get the bookings back
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: into the property.
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: And what impact like financially did that did the situation
• 3:19
  Speaker 1: and has this lockdown sort of had on you over
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: the last couple of days.
• 3:24
  Speaker 2: It's had an extreme financial effect on the business. Obviously,
• 3:28
  Speaker 2: when you go when you slash your ocutcy up to
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: sixty to seventy percent, you know that creates issues. Obviously,
• 3:36
  Speaker 2: staff still want work, people still want to work in
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: the business. Suppliers still want us to use them for orders.
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: So now we're in a situation where we're trying to
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: keep staff on keeping orders coming in. However, it is
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: hard when obviously when the finance there's not enough money
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: coming in due to the lockdown and customer resistance now
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: coming to Catherine or people aren't able to come to
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: Catherine and Joanna.
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: Staffing wise, I know you touched on this before, but
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: staffing wise, are you are you a few down due
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: to them sort of having to go into isolation and
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: await those test results.
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: Yes, Sallie, we were down. I think it was ten staff,
• 4:15
  Speaker 2: so five in Howard brings five in isolation, and so
• 4:20
  Speaker 2: that left us with one chef to be able to
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: and a young chef to be able to cater to
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: the requirements for the customers on site. We had two
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: good key staff members still available to help run the
• 4:32
  Speaker 2: show during the day, and we've had a couple of
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: reception staff. So we also had some fear from staff
• 4:37
  Speaker 2: to actually work on the property at the very start,
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: which is understandable. Yeah, so that made it difficult as well.
• 4:43
  Speaker 2: So as I said, the stuff that have been on
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: the ground have done an amazing job. We are so
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: proud of them.
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: Oh well, I'm you know, I'm glad that things are
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: looking up for you guys, and hopefully, you know, in
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: the next fifteen minutes we find out whether this lockdown
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: is lifting for us you're in DW and M for
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: you guys in Catherine, let's hope.
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: So Hi absolutely, yeah, so look forward to welcoming everybody
• 5:06
  Speaker 2: back down to Catherine once this is all over. And yeah,
• 5:09
  Speaker 2: business as usual and yeah keep smiling and loving the
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: territory way.
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: Yeah, good on you, Joanna, Thank you so much for
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: your time this morning.
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: No worry, Thanks, thanks for the chat.
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: Thanks problem