VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) - With temperatures rising outside and families getting stir crazy, a day at the beach might seem like just what the doctor ordered. But with Virginia still in the throes of a coronavirus pandemic, a lazy beach day comes with a set of rules.
Gov. Ralph Northam has forbidden groups of more than 10 people from gathering, and health officials are urging people to stay at least six feet apart. While private gyms and some public recreational outlets have shuttered - Virginia Beach on March 26 closed its playgrounds, basketball and volleyball courts, dog and skate parks - the governor stopped shy this week of buttoning up the state’s beaches. He left it up to localities to enforce his mandate.
“We really don’t have the power to shut down the beach, nor do I think we would want to,” Mayor Bobby Dyer said on March 25. “We want people to stay home, but they also need some form of exercising.”
Police officers from the Second Precinct are patrolling the sand and will compel large groups to split up. For now, they’re asking for voluntary compliance, a police spokeswoman said.
Norfolk closed some of its small parks on March 26 but is keeping its large parks and beaches open for now, according to Lori Crouch, a city spokeswoman.
“In these unprecedented times, we know people want to take a break and get outside,” Crouch wrote in an email. “We want to keep these spaces open as long as it remains in the best interest of the public to do so.”
She added that the city hoped people would adhere to the governor’s mandate.
“If city staff or police during patrols see a gathering of 10+ more people, they will disperse them,” she wrote.
York County officials have closed Yorktown Beach to sunbathers and swimmers to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The beach and Riverwalk Landing walkway are still open for pedestrians.
On the morning of March 26 at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront, small clusters of families and friends were exercising on the Boardwalk and playing with their dogs on the beach.
“This is my serenity right here,” said Don Gill, 64, a retired carpenter, who walks from 1st Street to the 15th Street fishing pier nearly every day.
Virginia Beach City Councilman Guy Tower, who represents the resort area, warned people their beach time could be in jeopardy if they don’t follow the rules.
“I hope my fellow beach lovers will be responsible using it,” he said. “The good thing about Virginia Beach is there’s plenty of room to get outside without having to congregate in groups.”
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