Border lockout leaves grandma in crowded house
There was no way Sandra was going to miss the arrival of her new granddaughter.
Heading to the Hunter Valley in NSW, the opportunity to spend some time with her son and his growing family during the school holiday break quickly turned into a stressful ordeal.
“Originally I was going there for just three and half weeks,” explained Sandra.
“I tried to come back, but then the borders shut.
Very quickly, a three-week visit turned into a three-month stay for Sandra, who was conscious of the stress her son’s family was already going through.
“I was becoming a burden,” she said
“I couldn’t get a normal permit, so I tried to get a health and wellbeing permit.
“I had appointments (in Victoria). I had a cardiologist here I needed to see.
“The Department of Health said ‘why can’t you get the same service in NSW’.
“I’ve had the same cardiologist for three years. There was that stress on me, which was worrying my son too.”
Sandra attempted to ease the burden on her son’s family by offering to stay with one of her sisters who also lived in NSW. This proved impossible, as they were both nurses and couldn’t allow houseguests.
Hotels were also problematic, as they were only accepting reservations from those working in essential services.
“It was just so stressful – there just wasn’t any end in sight,” she said.