Self-isolation? Some in Georgia choose beach instead
After being locked down for weeks, many residents in Georgia are thumbing their noses at the deadly coronavirus and seeking sanctuary in the sun, sand and waves of the southern state’s beaches. Under a cloudless blue sky with balmy temperatures and soft breezes rolling off the water, Tybee Island proved a powerful weekend lure Saturday for Georgians desperate for any return to normalcy — and an escape from selfimposed isolation. “How long are we supposed to imprison ourselves?” a bikini-clad Mackenzie Scharf, 30, said to AFP as her five-year-old son flew a Spider Man kite. “This is much safer than going grocery shopping.”
One day after Georgia’s governor allowed a limited reopening of thousands of businesses, several hundred people were enjoying Tybee Island’s sprawling South Beach. “It feels great — like it’s supposed to feel,” said 39year-old mother and housewife Rachel Lilly, barely lifting her head from a watermelon-themed towel as she enjoyed her first beach trip of the year. “I’m not concerned” about catching coronavirus, “as long as it’s not packed,” she said. “But if everyone does what we’re doing, that’s a problem.” Locals said Saturday was the busiest beach day of the year so far for Tybee Island, a laid-back tourist destination on Georgia’s Atlantic coast. Several hundred people were on the sand strolling, jogging, throwing footballs or wading in the mild waves. Social distancing was generally in effect. But masks or other protective gear? Forget about it. “It’s just nice to, you know, come up for a little air,” silver-haired attorney Brian Monroe, 49, said after throwing a Frisbee with his daughter. “When the beach is sparsely populated like this it’s not too hard to social distance.”
Tybee Island authorities nevertheless were patrolling the sand on allwheel drive vehicles, cautioning people about distancing. One block off the sand, sun-splashed youths wearing sandals and long swim trunks scanned their phones and held red plastic cups as they rode cruiser bikes through quiet streets. The smell of sunblock lingered. A motorcycle group rumbled down the main drag, Butler Avenue. Restaurants and smoothie shops were providing take-out for beachgoers.
‘Get it on’
This was not the scene that Tybee Island’s Mayor Shirley Sessions envisioned. She shut the community’s beaches several weeks ago as a measure to contain viral spread. But this month Georgia Governor Brian Kemp overruled her with an order of his own. Georgia’s neighbors South Carolina and Florida have both opened some of their beaches. But Georgia has gone further. On Friday, Kemp gave permission for some small businesses to reopen statewide, including barber shops, bowling alleys and nail salons, provided protective health measures were in place. Restaurants and social clubs can open come Monday.—AFP