Coronavirus Outbreak Prompts Hollywood, Dania Beach Close Beaches
HOLLYWOOD (CBSMiami) - Two more beaches have been closed to the public to prevent the potential spread of coronavirus.
Hollywood, which is under a partial activation of their Emergency Operations Center, closed their beach and the Hollywood Broadwalk at 1 p.m. on Monday. They also announced that all city-sponsored events have been cancelled through the end of March and all city-programming held indoors within Community Centers has been cancelled until further notice.
"When the spring breakers from Miami Beach and Fort Lauderdale were told their beaches were closed, we knew, and had information, that a surge would come to city of Hollywood beach and we needed to protect the public the same way those other cities took action," said Hollywood Mayor Josh Levy.
People at the beach begrudgingly left.
"We were asked to leave the beach because of the virus and we're very sad," said Pasqualina Vasaio.
Outdoor parks are open to the public, but the public is encouraged to use social distancing when using these outdoor public areas.
Hollywood also announced Monday night that effective March 17, all bars, restaurants and nightclubs across the city must close daily business operations at 10:00 p.m. and reduce occupancy by 50%.
Dania Beach also closed its beach and adjacent parking lot. The fishing pier and the Quarterdeck restaurant on the pier remain open.
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Over the weekend, two popular beaches for students on spring break closed to the public.
Miami Beach closed a section of its beach from 5th to 15th Street, as well as Loomis Park. Fort Lauderdale closed the beaches from Harbor Drive to just north of Oakland Park Boulevard until April 12th, officially ending spring break and postponing events like the Tortuga Music Festival.
"We have to do everything possible to minimize crowds and unfortunately our beaches must be part of our plan. I want to be clear that this is not an overreaction, but a way for us to help stop further cases of COVID-19 in our community," said city commission Ben Sorenson.
According to the latest update from the Florida Department of Health, Florida has 19 new confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 155. Broward has two new cases, bringing the county's total to 38. Miami-Dade has 10 more cases, bringing the total in the county to 23.
