Stay away, Covidiots!
Hotspots beg tourists not to visit ... but STILL crowds turn out in defiance of safety rules
THOUSANDS of people yesterday flouted Government warnings to stay indoors as much as possible to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Beaches, beauty spots, parks and playgrounds were packed as Britons took advantage of the sunny spring weather.
As the pictures on these pages show, the Government’s advice to ‘exercise safely’ – remaining around six-and-a-half feet or two metres apart – was not being heeded in many cases, increasing the risk the deadly virus could be more easily spread.
A new term, ‘ Covidiot’, was used on social media to describe those who were putting the health of the community at risk of Covid-19 by rubbing shoulders too closely with strangers.
Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said people need to realise that the Government’s advice to keep social distance ‘isn’t a game’.
He said people can still go out for walks and take exercise, but added: ‘Lots of people sat out together in parks or on beaches. That isn’t sensible. We strongly discourage that.’
Some city and town centres across the UK took the message to heart, with many appearing deserted. But in other places it was busy as a bank holiday.
Locals angered by incomers fleeing the virus put up signs to discourage them. A picture showed a sign in Llanuwchllyn, Gwynedd, North Wales, reading: ‘No non-essential travel. So why are you here?’
Another image, shared by Judy Murray, mother of tennis star Sir Andy, showed a Land Rover and trailer by the lake at Bala, also in Gwynedd, spray-painted with the words: ‘Go home idiots. Covid-19.’
It came as the Lake District and other tourist destinations in Cumbria reported an ‘influx’ of visitors. Cumbria Police’s assistant chief constable Andrew Slattery told people to stay away, reminding them the area is ‘no longer conducting business as usual’.
In Snowdonia trekkers climbed Pen y Pass near Llanberis cheek by jowl. At the Brecon Beacons, hordes of walkers traipsed up hills.
And Richmond Park in SouthWest London was described as being the busiest it had been for years. A spokesman for the Royal Parks said: ‘If people do not follow social distancing guidelines we will have no choice but to consider closing parks.’
Leicestershire County Council has announced that all of its country parks are closed with immediate effect, as did the Wildlife and Wetland Trust at Slimbridge, Gloucestershire. Northamptonshire
police said its officers visited nine pubs in Corby over the past two days after receiving reports they were still open.
West Midlands police said its officers would be ‘out and about’ last night to remind pub owners of the Government guidelines.
Officials in Skegness called for arcades and caravan parks to be shut after thousands of visitors flouted Government advice on social distancing.
The area has more than 200 caravan sites and 25,000 static caravans but only a downgraded hospital with no full A& E; Lincoln County Hospital, the nearest acute hospital, is over an hour away.
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