[imagesource: News24]

Back in the day, ‘Tinners’ was just one of those places you somehow ended up at after a big night.

You could always rely on a bouncer that resembled the movie character Pootie Tang, wearing a shirt at least two sizes too small, letting you in, and sometimes there was the added bonus of a cheap boerie roll being sold outside.

They were simpler times.

Tin Roof is in the news this week for all the wrong reasons, though, thanks to an October 3 party hosted by the popular Claremont bar / club.

TimesLIVE reports that there have been an estimated 63 COVID-19 cases identified in the Southern Suburbs, most of which are matric pupils, and the infections can be traced back to the Tin Roof jol.

The Western Cape’s contact tracing teams were alerted by doctors in the area, who had noticed a pattern among new infections:

Western Cape premier Alan Winde said preliminary data indicated that of the 63 cases detected to date, 37 were matric pupils who attend schools in the southern suburbs. Most of the pupils attend private schools.

He said his office had been alerted that “the required regulations and the required safety behaviours were not adhered to in this case”.

Unfortunately, unlike many of the other things you can catch at Tin Roof, COVID-19 isn’t curable with a shot of penicillin.

As a result of the outbreak, the Western Cape Liquor Authority and the police are set to investigate the events of that night, but Tin Roof owner James Truter denies any wrongdoing:

“There’s been zero negligence on our part. The Saturday of October 3 was a normal trading day with no special performances or special event of any sort.”

Truter said he has heard about several parties, including house parties in the Claremont area, that were attended by young people who later moved to his establishment for an after-party. He denied allegations that his nightclub, which is currently trading only as a bar, attracted crowds.

In addition, Truter says that his staff followed all of the hygiene protocols required, such as temperature scanning and hand sanitising, and that recent changes to the venue have made it a safer environment.

After News24 broke the story alleging that Tin Roof’s party was the ‘super spreader event’, Truter hit back angrily:

Truter said the company had struggled during the lockdown closure for six-and-a-half months, and had adapted its club space into a bar. There was no space for dancing anymore, with pool tables moved to the dance floor…

“As you can see, we are not taking this lightly and are not prepared to risk the well-being of our customers, nor our ability to trade – your article blames us as a venue for spreading the virus and for being negligent – what utter nonsense,” said Truter.

“The kids are going mental at the moment,” he told News24.

Reports suggest that on the night in question, Tin Roof was offering R10 shots, as well as two-for-one drink specials.

Whilst the exact number of confirmed cases linked to the event remains unclear, Herschel Girls’ Secondary School head Heather Goedeke confirmed to IOL that 13 matric pupils who tested positive for COVID-19 were linked to the Tin Roof cluster.

It’s also claimed that Rondebosch Boys’ High had 11 cases linked to the Tin Roof event.

One parent took to Tin Roof’s Facebook page to unleash the snark:

“Tin Roof serving free Corona to all teenagers in the southern suburbs. Neighbour’s daughter was even able to bring home a takeaway.’’

Sure, the ‘neighbour’s daughter’.

With matric exams just around the corner, many schools fear that a COVID-19 outbreak could cause havoc to scheduling, or prevent certain pupils from writing altogether.

[sources:timeslive&news24&iol]