Thousands Of Americans Flagrantly Violated CDC Social Distancing Guidelines This Memorial Day Weekend. Here Are The Worst Offenders

Memorial Day weekend 2020 offered Americans their first opportunity to get out from under months of stay-at-home orders and head to the beach. It was a long time coming, with tens of millions of people getting their first taste of summer after a long, silent spring—without seeing friends and family, dine-in restaurants, open bars, the right to free movement, interstate travel, and almost everything else that we associate with the right to live our best lives.

For many public health officials and state policymakers, however, whose essential job it is to keep a watchful eye on the country’s phased re-openings across the broader economy and carefully calculate each next step while managing the continuing surge of coronavirus across dozens of states and hundreds of counties, this Memorial Day weekend wasn’t the best litmus test for restraint, personal responsibility, and the collective mantra that we’re all in this together.

I recently wrote about how most of America’s beaches were re-opened for Memorial Day—which most Governors deemed essential for maintaining some semblance of sanity for the official opening of America’s summer while simultaneously phasing in the gradual re-openings of their state economies, including restaurants, retailers, bars, casinos, and entertainment venues.

That offer of a slightly new summer normal, however, came with the express caveat that the Centers for Disease Control’s 6’ social distancing guidelines, requirements for face coverings in situations were 6’ can’t be achieved, and state and local laws related to the size of gatherings and what activities are permitted, would be obeyed. Those guidelines were put in place by scientists and health professionals to strike a careful balance in a time of a global pandemic to let Americans get back to life while simultaneously preventing the ongoing spread of a still highly active and contagious virus on the backside of ab apparently “flattened” curve that could threaten even more lives beyond the almost 100,000 that have already been lost.

In dozens of towns and tourist destinations across America over this past weekend, news and social media outlets were quick to report that didn’t happen.

Dr. Deborah Birx, the Coronavirus Response Coordinator for the White House Coronavirus Task Force quickly took to the Sunday news shows, saying she was “extremely concerned” by what she saw—including thousands of people crowding boardwalks, pools, bars, hot tubs, and beach parties in flagrant violation of the CDC’s 6’ social distancing guidelines and almost every state’s recommendation that everyone wear masks when 6’ can’t be maintained. In many places, the entire concept of “restricted gatherings” and “non-passive activities”, ergo no lounging or congregating around kegs on the beach, were flagrantly violated, despite beach patrols and police on ATVs doing their best to enforce the rules.

For every American who took great care and caution this weekend to keep themselves and their families safe by playing by the rules, and containing the further spread of coronavirus, many of the pictures circulating on social media this weekend come with a stark warning for the months ahead. No one can predict where, how, or to what extent coronavirus can spread next. What is certain is that state health professionals, county commissioners, and Governors can shut down America’s beaches as fast as they opened them back up over the past few weeks. And with three months of great weather left that’s going to leave a lot of people wondering happened to summer if thousands of people keep disregarding simple prudence, respect for others, and the medical consensus of America’s health professionals that more “super spreader” events like March’s outbreaks over spring break are just waiting to happen again.

Here are the worst offenders so far (updates to come as more news and social media reports come in).

Port Aransas, Texas

Ocean City, Maryland

Lake of The Ozarks, Missouri

Galveston, Texas

Daytona Beach, Florida