South Beach, usually bustling with spring breakers at this time of year, has gone almost silent amid the coronavirus crisis.
It was just a week ago that Felix Mohen landed in Florida, hopped in an Uber and headed straight for Ocean Drive, the famed South Beach promenade of open-air poolside bars, topless sunbathing and neon-lit Art Deco hotels across from 2½ miles of beaches that swell with thousands of revelers each March for spring break.
Bars and restaurants have gone dark. Police guard the beaches, chasing off intruders. Shirtless rollerbladers and skateboarders are now fully clothed with gas masks over their faces, if they’re out at all.“It’s like there’s been a hurricane,” said Vitaly, a local resident who took a stroll with a friend early Friday morning up Collins Avenue, a street of dozens of hotels that’s usually teeming with tourists. “I pay a lot of rent to be here, and we can’t even go to the beach.
And the beaches were packed with students and visitors, despite attempts by state and city officials to limit crowds and encourage social distancing. “Spring break is canceled,“ he declared. Still, crowds diverted north and south, and international media reports caused a public relations nightmare for city and health officials.
By Friday morning, DeSantis did the same for Broward and Palm Beach counties, the two counties north of Miami-Dade. At least nine infections have been linked to people who attended Winter Party, an LGBTQ festival that took place in early March in South Beach. Last Friday, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez became one of the first public officials to confirm he had the virus. He believes he was infected after attending an event with a Brazilian government official who also tested positive.
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