Florida Beaches Remain Crowded Amid Coronavirus Concerns
Written by SOURCE on March 18, 2020
It appears that Florida spring breakers have disregarded social distancing guidelines during the coronavirus pandemic. Photos and videos that have surfaced online show Clearwater Beach crowded with thousands of tourists who are swimming and lying next to each other.
On Tuesday morning, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis mandated that all bars and nightclubs close for 30 days. He also advised that the state’s 12 public universities use distance learning for students for the rest of the semester. He ordered restaurants to cut down their maximum capacity by 50% and suggested that people get take out.
Yet, he didn’t order beaches across the state to close. “What we’re going to be doing is, simply, for the statewide floor for beaches, is applying the CDC guidance of no group on a beach more than 10 and you have to have distance apart if you’re going to be out there,” DeSantis said, per CBS News. “Different localities are going to make decisions about what makes sense.”
Many beachgoers haven’t taken concerns for coronavirus seriously. Public health experts have recommended avoiding gatherings of over 10 people. The CDC also recommends keeping six feet away from other people.
“If I get corona, I get corona. At the end of the day, I’m not gonna let it stop me from partying,” Brady Sluder, a spring breaker from Ohio, told Reuters. “We’re just out here having a good time. Whatever happens, happens.”
Though Florida’s Gulf Coast is packed with spring breakers, Fort Lauderdale, Miami Beach, and other beaches have shuttered. As of Tuesday, bars, nightclubs, restaurants, venues, and gyms are also closing in some cities.
