Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would leave the decision to close the state’s beaches to local governments amid the coronavirus outbreak.
“What we’re going to be doing for the statewide floor for beaches, we’re going to be 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 in a statement. “So that applies statewide.”
The beaches remaining open comes while thousands have swarmed to Florida for spring break.
On Tuesday, DeSantis ordered the closing of all bars and night clubs for a month while also having restaurants reduce capacity by 50%.
Clearwater Beach, Florida is PACKED today despite “social distancing” recommendations. https://t.co/WzGydcP1Ja pic.twitter.com/vsRD4QLbhr
— WFLA NEWS (@WFLA) March 16, 2020
So far, over 8,000 Americans have confirmed cases of the coronavirus. Florida now has over 300 confirmed cases.
