St. Louis County urges residents to self-quarantine after crowded weekend at Lake of the Ozarks

As a precautionary measure, County Executive Dr. Sam Page asked the county’s Department of Health to issue a travel advisory that urges residents who ignored protective practices over the weekend to self-quarantine for 14 days or until testing negative for COVID-19, according to a press release.

“This reckless behavior endangers countless people and risks setting us back substantially from the progress we have made in slowing the spread of COVID-19,” Page said. “I encourage everyone to follow the Department of Public Health advisory to determine a safe path forward in the workplace.”

Videos went viral this weekend showing large crowds of people as they appear to ignore social distancing guidelines and not wear masks while at swim-up bars and restaurants such as Backwater Jacks Bar & Grill in Osage Beach.

Osage Beach Mayor John Olivarri said visitors were well aware of what the Lake of the Ozarks would be like on a holiday weekend and defended locals who want to make a living for themselves.

“Are we going to make everybody happy because we are open? Probably not,” he said, according to KSDK, the local NBC affiliate. “Do I feel bad that our businesses have opened up and giving our employees the opportunity to go back into work and feed their families? Absolutely not.”

Camden County Sheriff Tony Helms released a letter to the public acknowledging the “unique situation” posed by the weekend’s events.

“Social distancing is not a crime, and therefore, the sheriff’s office has no authority to enforce actions in that regard. We expect residents and visitors alike to exhibit personal responsibility when at the lake,” he said.

But Lyda Krewson, the mayor of St. Louis, condemned the “irresponsible and dangerous” behavior seen in the videos.

“Now, these folks will be coming home to St. Louis and counties all over Missouri and the Midwest, raising concerns about the potential of more positive cases, hospitalizations, and tragically, deaths,” Krewson said in a statement. “It’s just deeply disturbing.”

St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri, are the closest major cities to the Lake of the Ozarks, which is located between them in the center of the state.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson allowed businesses to start reopening on May 4 as part of the state’s “Show Me Strong Recovery” Plan, but still requires people to stay 6 feet apart until the end of the month. The state’s stay-at-home order leaves it up to state and local health officials to enforce the restrictions.

Randall Williams, the director of Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, issued a statement on Sunday to remind people that even if they are not experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, they may still have the virus and can pass it on to others.

“This Memorial Day, we caution that COVID-19 is still here, and social distancing needs to continue to prevent further spread of infections,” Williams said. “Close contact with others, even if you are in the outdoors, is still considered close contact and can lead to more infections, as we still have new cases of COVID-19 being detected each day in Missouri. The virus can be transmitted even among those young and healthy who aren’t experiencing symptoms. When they then carry the virus and transmit it to a more vulnerable person, this is when we tend to see the long-lasting and tragic impact of these decisions that are being made.”

Missouri’s health department said on Monday that the state had seen 12,167 positive coronavirus patients and 685 deaths associated with the virus.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that “everyone wear cloth face coverings when leaving their homes, regardless of whether they have fever or symptoms of COVID-19. This is because of evidence that people with COVID-19 can spread the disease, even when they don’t have any symptoms.”