Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Lake Boca’s party-happy boaters raising concerns
Officials looking to change how social distancing is enforced
The party continues on Lake Boca despite the COVID-19 crisis, and a lack of enforcement by police and state authorities means boaters could be spreading the coronavirus as they soak in the sun.
Dozens of boaters anchor at the popular site on weekends, some tying their boats together in a practice known as “rafting.”
Government orders on social distancing prohibit rafting, but no one agency — the city police, the county sheriff or the state wildlife commission — is responsible for policing the boaters’ behavior. And all three say they rely on warnings rather than citations to encourage correct behavior.
Some local officials say it’s time for things to change.
Boca Raton City Council Member Andy Thomson said he has heard complaints about rafting on many waterways, including Lake Boca, as people get increasingly eager to return to normalcy.
“As time has gone on in the midst of the pandemic, more and more people are wanting to go out on the boats,” Thomson said. “They can still go out on their boats; they can go wherever they want. They just can’t be rafting.”
Others feel the same. Some took to social media expressing concern with the crowds they’ve seen over the past few weeks.
On July 19, a user posted Facebook photos of dozens of boats gathered with the caption “This is NOT social distancing on lake boca!!!”
A week later, another user posted a similar photo writing: “Lake Boca Raton, dozens of boats and people in the water. It’s crowds like these that are leading to the surge in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths in South Florida.”
The problem was most egregious around March, when the pandemic first hit. People often packed themselves shoulder to shoulder on boats tied together. But some rafting continues today, and Thomson wants the community to take steps to stop the virus from spreading.
The situation might be more extreme in Boca Raton than elsewhere. The sandbars in Fort Lauderdale, for example, have traditionally been popular party spots
for boaters, but law enforcement officials say they haven’t seen issues with rafting or COVID-19 compliance.
Broward County Sheriff ’s Office spokesman Carey Codd said the marine patrol unit has seen no increase in complaints about large groups of boats, and the agency has issued no warnings or citations for COVID-19 violations.
Fort Lauderdale Police spokeswoman Ali Adamson said that department’s marine unit also has seen few problems and has resolved any problems with verbal warnings.
Lax enforcement of coronavirus rules has drawn complaints throughout the pandemic, with critics saying that warnings are not enough incentive to get people in line. Many cities are resolving to crack down harder as COVID-19 cases grow by the thousands every day.
The waterways seem to be an exception.
Mark Economou, spokesman for the Boca Raton Police Department, said marine unit officers are on duty every day. But while the agency has issued dozens of verbal warnings for rafting and boats anchored too close together, officers have given no citations. Boaters have complied with the warnings, he said.
JP Tirone, 27 of Southwest Ranches, spends weekends on Lake Boca a couple times a month. He said he hasn’t seen much of an issue with rafting or large groups on his recent trips there. When there has been problems, Tirone said Boca police were there to break it up, usually flashing their lights and reminding people of the rules.
“They’re not out there to ruin people’s weekend. They’re just out there to make sure people are following guidelines to the best of their ability,” Tirone said.
Tirone was boating out at Lake Boca long before the pandemic hit. He said what he’s seen recently is very different than how it was a year ago.
“It’s nothing like it was pre-coronavirus,” Tirone said. “It used to be party central out there.”
Still, Thomson, the city councilman, wants to see more patrol on the water to make sure people are following guidelines. He said problems on Lake Boca call for more patrols, particularly with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spread thin on other waterways.
“All levels of government have concluded that large gatherings are not responsible right now,” Thomson said. “It’s a civic responsibility we all have.”
Carol Lyn Parrish, an FWC spokeswoman, said the commission in most case refers complaints about COVID-19-related violations to county enforcement, unless the violation occurred within the waters of a state park. The FWC has responded to some calls about more than 10 people on a single boat, she said in an email, but she could not immediately determine whether any citations have been issued.
Teri Barbera, spokeswoman for the Palm Beach County Sheriff ’s Office, said those officers have not responded to any complaints at Lake Boca related to COVID-19. She said the Sheriff ’s Office has been patrolling other areas that have become popular spots for boats to gather such as Peanut Island and the Jupiter sandbars.
Barbera did not say whether any citations have been issued, but, like Boca Raton police, she said sheriff ’s officers typically rely on verbal warnings.
“As time has gone on in the midst of the pandemic, more and more people are wanting to go out on the boats. They can still go out on their boats; they can go wherever they want. They just can’t be rafting.” Andy Thomson, Boca Raton City Council member