The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Welcome to Quarantine
New tri-state travel advisory now in effect
When Michelle Stelly landed at a nearly-empty Bradley Airport in Hartford Thursday afternoon, she was immediately comforted by the sight of everyone in a mask, maintaining their social distance.
She’d just come from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where she’d been visiting for a quick trip to see family for her grandmother’s 101st birthday. While she was gone, though, the governors of Connecticut, New York and New Jersey implemented a mandatory 14-day quarantine for anyone traveling to the region from state’s with rising COVID-19 infection rates. Both Carolina states made the list.
Stelly, who lives in Farmington where she works as a hairdresser, only recently was able to go back to work, so the idea of taking two weeks off to quarantine isn’t an appealing one. Still, she plans to do it anyway.
“I’m not happy about it, but it’s a good idea,” Stelly said. “Down there, half the people in South Carolina didn’t have masks on. I went into a grocery store and none of the employees were wearing masks, so it’s no wonder they’re having problems with the virus, so I’m not surprised we have to do this here now. It’s just nice to see, coming home, to see everyone cares more about keeping each other safe.”
Stelly hopes to get tested for the virus in the next few days, and pending a negative test may be able to get back to work sooner. Until then though, she has every intention of complying with Gov. Ned Lamont’s order, even though the governor has made it clear that there won’t be any serious repercussions for violating the edict.
Lamont visited the airport Thursday, about 12 hours after the tri-state effort went into effect. Electronic signs throughout the baggage claim area warned passengers of the travel advisory, though most of those landing at Bradley seemed to be people returning to Connecticut from a vacation elsewhere, not tourists coming from afar for short trips to the Nutmeg state.
To those travelers, Lamont repeated a now-familiar mantra.
“If you’re coming from one of these really hot zones where there’s a high infection rate and you’re coming up here for something that’s not absolutely essential, like a few days, I say stay safe, stay at home,” Lamont said. “I think that’s safer for us and probably safer for you.”
Lamont said his administration has been in touch with hotels and travel agents in the state, informing them of the new criteria. Those landing at Bradley or checking into a hotel in the state will likely be asked to fill out a form asking them questions about where they’ve been and if they’re experiencing any symptoms. If they’ve recently been tested for the virus, they could show negative test results to shorten their mandatory quarantine.
Still, Lamont was clear: unlike Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who threatened thousand dollar fines for anyone unwilling to comply, visitors to Connecticut won’t be punished. He’s relying on the power of a little societal shame for now, but to be clear, he could have given the mandate more legal teeth had he wanted to.
“That’s not where we are,” Lamont said. “We found in this state that I didn’t have to punish people about the mask. Almost everybody was wearing a mask. We’ve gone to a lot of stores, we’ve gone to a lot of restaurants. We haven’t had to shut down or fine anybody, we have had friendly reminders saying this is what the rules are in terms of the protocols. I like to think that same type of voluntary compliance is going to work in this case as well.”
One family of seven, returning to Connecticut from Tampa, said they were in Florida for 14 days, and were required to quarantine for the entire vacation. Now, on the day of their return they’ll need to quarantine for another two weeks. They’re all counting on being tested for the virus in the next day or so and expect negative results given the length of time they’ve already quarantined. Until then, though, they’ll be continuing their social isolation at their homes in Connecticut.
Another woman visiting from North Carolina said she’s only staying through Sunday and is driving back to North Carolina with her grandchildren in tow for the summer. She said she’s hardly left her house there, and doesn’t intend to go anywhere while she’s in Connecticut.
“North Carolina is behind the ball on this whole thing,” said the woman who declined to share her name. She lived in Connecticut her whole life and retired to North Carolina where her house is near the beach. “We just got the mask order yesterday. So I’m glad people are being safe up here.”
Kevin Dillon, executive director for the Connecticut Airport Authority, said at the height of the pandemic, airport traffic at Bradley was 98 percent lower than normal. It’s only recovered minimally since then — rising about 20 percent — but he expects the new travel advisory will deter some travelers and that number will dip again.
Dillon said he and Lamont have discussed the possibility of setting up an airport test site for the virus, though he’s not sure yet how that could work. No other airport has made that service available, to his knowledge, he said.
“There’s no doubt this is going to have a significant impact on air travel,” Dillon said. “And airlines are concerned about it. They’re concerned about the activities that states across the
country have had to face since the start of the pandemic. Do I believe the quarantine is going to reverse some of that progress? Yes, I do. But in the airport, we’re not in the health business. I don’t make health decisions, certainly we wish there were other ways to go about it, that’s why I discussed with the governor the potential of setting up a testing site.”
The announcement of the mandatory quarantine, and Lamont’s plea for travelers to reconsider visiting Connecticut, comes on the heals of the state’s successful reopening, including a push to reopen the state’s tourism industry especially as infection rates in the area have remained low. Now, Lamont says the state will primarily market its tourist attractions only within the region.
“Isn’t that ironic? We just opened up our hotels in the last week or two,” Lamont said. “New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, all of those places have a very low infection rate. That’s where we’re advertising. Those are the folks we’re saying, Connecticut, back to nature, still close to civilization. I think Massachusetts and other folks coming from New York and New Jersey to enjoy beautiful southeast Connecticut will say I respect the fact that Connecticut is taking the protocols seriously, this is a place I can go safely. This is a place we’re happy to receive you safely.”