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BIRDS Amusements said they will adhere to all public health guidelines and COVID-19 regulations when they open at the grounds of Harriers Athletic Club, Dan Spring Road, from Saturday 15th to Sunday 30th August, operating from 12pm until 8pm daily.
Director Don Bird said a visit to the popular funfair will be a very different affair this year to ensure staff and customers are safe, with a range of measures introduced (see below).
Under current Covid-19 regulations for outdoor gatherings, attendances are limited to 200 people and visitors to Birds are advised not to congregate outside the fairground, while parking is not permitted on Dan Spring Road.
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Birds have permission to open under Phase 3 of the Government’s Reopening Plan which was announced in June, but the company chose to defer the commencement of operations in the county this summer in order to diligently finalise the new operational working plan.
Mr Bird said considerable time and resources have been invested in ensuring that very high standard of new guidelines and protocols could be developed and implemented to ensure the safety of staff and visitors, while also ensuring the fulltime staff under quarantine received their compliance certificates in Covid-19 induction training.
“We’ve been proud to support communities in Kerry for over 80 years during which time we have built up a positive relationship with the people of Kerry,” said Don Bird. “They trust us and we are dedicated to maintaining that sentiment when we return to work. Obviously, we cannot operate the same way as we have done in the past. A visit to our fun fair will be very different to ensure our staff and customers are safe. Everyone is accustomed to using hand sanitiser, wearing masks and maintaining social distance in various indoor and outdoor settings. Everything is in place at Birds Funfair as we prepare to open our doors to welcome customers in Kerry.”
There will be clear signage outlining the Covid-19 preventative measures, hand sanitization stations at all attractions, social distancing friendly queuing systems, contactless payment option on all attractions, temperature checks, customer-facing staff will be wearing visors, a strict regimented sanitization regime for all common touch points and many more new changes.
“Our primary concern of the Bird Family is the safety of their staff and visitors and for that reason they have to make many changes to daily operations to ensure that they can provide the highest safety level possible and still be able to provide top class entertainment to the public,” said Mr Bird.
“We will open in Tralee next week and in mid-September in Listowel, and while we understand that procedures are subject to change due to the evolving nature of Covid-19, we look forward to the opportunity to demonstrate to the people in Kerry that we can implement our new safety protocols in such a way that will allow them to experience all the fun of the fair safely,” he added.
To facilitate reopening the following measures have been taken…
• All Staff have completed COVID-19 Induction training and have obtained compliance certificates
• Using Computer Aided Design, the layout plan has been extensively revised to facilitate physical distancing
• To facilitate enhanced physical distancing, two uniquely distinct Zones have been created to separate the Family friendly attractions from the thrill rides
• Clear COVID-19 signage and hand sanitizing stations will be present on arrival and throughout the fun fair
• All the attractions will have designated Entrances and Exits with sanitizing stations
• Already aggressive cleaning and disinfection procedures will be increased and high touch points will be frequently sanitised
• Queuing may be necessary as the number of guests attending the fun fair will be dramatically limited to facilitate physical distancing
• All Employees will undergo daily temperature checks and extensive training in the new procedures prior to opening
• Contactless payments will be facilitated on the attractions with a central pay booth at the entrance selling Tokens that customers can redeem on all attractions
• Additional stewards will be located at the designated Entrance and Exit points of the fun fair
• Customers are asked to please be patient with Employees and Management as they implement the changes necessary to ensure the continued health and safety of staff and customers
