In Ocean City, a shocking lack of social distancing

My beach experience this past weekend was quite different from that of your reporter, Hallie Miller (“In Ocean City, visitors head back to beach and boardwalk after Maryland lifts stay-at-home order,” May 17). Perhaps this was because of the cooler weather on Sunday when she was there. I was in the northern end of Ocean City on Friday, May15, and Saturday, May16, gloriously warm and sunny days, and was shocked by the lack of voluntary compliance with social distancing measures.

There were areas where beach goers did manage to “set up camp” with adequate space between groups, but most groups were less careful about their own spacing and about their encroachment into the spaces of others. Mask-less walker and runners often thoughtlessly positioned themselves too close to others walking along or standing at water’s edge. Children running back forth from blankets to the ocean and folks in the water did not maintain social distancing.

Given all that we know about droplet spread, the crowded beach was obviously not safe. I am saddened that the oblivious selfishness of others makes the beach an unsafe place to be.

Deborah Kohl, Baltimore