Social Distancing, Mask Rules In Effect For Beachgoers Eager To Celebrate July 4th In New York, New Jersey
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Many people in New York and New Jersey are heading to beaches Saturday to celebrate the July 4th holiday.
But, concerns over the coronavirus remain and social distancing rules will be in effect.
Lots of folks were taking advantage of the good weather at Asbury Park in New Jersey.
On the boardwalk, people were seen following social distancing rules by constantly moving and not stopping, CBS2's Cory James reports.
On the beach, people were more relaxed, enjoying their time in the sun.
Different groups of families and friends were spaced out from people they didn't know with their chairs and umbrellas.
A number of beach-goers said they are just glad to be at the beach during a pandemic, and for them, seeing people embrace social distancing rules along with face coverings made them feel safe.
"This is my first time coming out from my house and so far I've seen, like, every place, they had the distance and there's a lot of people wearing their mask, so that's good," Luz Figuorora, of Paramus, New Jersey, said.
Not everyone got to celebrate on the sand. Day passes and wristbands sold out quickly.
Sergio Valencia, of Westchester, and his family were forced to gaze at the ocean from the grass.
"My idea was to went to the water, but we're not allowed, which, we respect that," he said. "But we're alright."
Elena Valk, of Marlboro, New Jersey, says she wasn't alright. Her efforts using the Viply app to get a day pass in advance were unsuccessful.
"I checked like every few minutes for a couple hours, and there was absolutely nothing," she said. "It was very frustrating."
Asbury Park's beach safety supervisor Joe Bongiovanni explained why passes were so limited.
"We've already sold over 8,000 season passes and we don't know how many of those people are gonna come each day, so we try to limit the number of dailies that we sell so that we can maintain that social distancing," he said.
Still, there were plenty of places to eat, drink and shop at the Convention Hall, a place where people were required to walk in with face coverings on.
Store employees were happy to see them after weeks of little business.
"This is a small business, so it's definitely nice to have that support from the community again," Wanderlust Land & Sea employee Kiersten Litton said.
Even though there were no fireworks to compliment the night sky and full moon, patriotism was alive and well, a sign that the pandemic didn't overshadow a holiday that many enjoy spending outdoors with loved ones by their side.
"I'm very grateful and I think we should all be grateful just to be out of the house," Ariel Lopez, of Belmar, said.
Anyone who wants to visit the beach Sunday will have to purchase their ticket through the app Viply.
- For more information, visit viplypass.com/asbury-park-beach-badges.
Asbury Park official say they will likely release a few hundred additional tickets for purchase around 8:30 or 9 a.m. Sunday.
MORE: Thousands Expected At City Beaches For July 4th Weekend
Residents also flocked to beaches on Long Island for the holiday. Some even had to close to prevent overcrowding.
At noon, officials said Lido Beach reached maximum capacity of 50% and was closed to new visitors.
Butch Yamali, the president of the Malibu Shore Club, spoke about what they're doing to keep everyone safe.
"Everybody has to wear a mask when they're in public. We did spacing between the cabanas, so if you're sitting there with your family, as long as the group is 10 or smaller, we got the distance between the next person. It's very safe. We have hand sanitizer stations all over the place," he said.
Right now, all Town of Hempstead beaches are open to Nassau County residents only.
