Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said Tuesday that he will not be ordering the beaches in his state to close despite growing concerns over the international COVID-19 outbreak, NBC News reports.
DeSantis said that beaches in the state must adhere to guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which has advised the public to practice social distancing and avoid gatherings with more than 10 people.
“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. So that applies statewide,” DeSantis reportedly said at a press conference.
“We’ve seen some big crowds on the west coast of Florida and I’ve had a chance to speak to mayors on both coast today,” DeSantis also said, according to a local NBC affiliate. “If … they want to continue to [leave the beach open], we want them to have the freedom to do that, but we also want them to have the freedom to do more if they see fit.”
The Florida Republican added that it is “not uniform throughout the state that you’re seeing massive crowds at beaches.”
However, DeSantis did urge students celebrating spring break to exercise more caution as the state works to combat the spread. Florida’s Department of Health has reported more than 280 cases of residents with the virus and seven deaths so far.
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Florida governor refuses to close beaches as coronavirus cases rise https://t.co/jOEtM5E7S3 pic.twitter.com/4JbLGjBoZN
— The Hill (@thehill) March 18, 2020
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