MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Joggers without face masks at public parks and golf players are acceptable under Mayor Carlos Gimenez’s idea of gradually “moving to a new normal" during the coronavirus pandemic in Miami-Dade County.
The hashtag #FloridaMorons went viral nationwide on Saturday after crowds gathered at beaches in Duval and St. Johns counties. Gimenez said opening public beaches is not part of his plan.
“We can’t let a handful of folks that just don’t want to follow the rules to ruin it for the rest of us,” Gimenez said.
Gimenez held a public virtual town hall on that same day to discuss plans to reopen Miami-Dade’s parks and golf courses, which he closed March 19. Some residents were concerned about people stealing toilet paper from public bathrooms.
“We have to have toilet paper guards,” Gimenez said, adding Miami-Dade County personnel will be at the parks and golf courses to enforce social distancing.
Toilet paper is the least of Gimenez’s worries.
Without a vaccine, epidemiologists and physicians warn COVID-19 will continue killing vulnerable Floridians. But economists warn, the mitigation strategies are fueling a recession that includes skyrocketing unemployment rates and the closure of small businesses.
Gimenez is also the Republican candidate running for Congress against Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a Democrat who has been critical of reopening plans promoted by President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The Florida Chamber of commerce has asked DeSantis for a “surgical” reopening that considers only 21% of Florida’s population is aged 65 or older. About 16% of the population in Miami-Dade is 65 or older, so Miami-Dade also has issues with long-term care facilities where dozens have reported COVID-19 has hit and 42 people have died.
Gimenez implied there are also other public health concerns to consider.
“Doctors agree that open-air activities are good for the people’s physical and mental health,” Gimenez said. “They are also finding that obesity is contributing to the mortality rate of COVID-19 patients, so we will like people to get some open air and sunshine but to do it in the right way.”
Miami, Hialeah and Miami Beach are among the Miami-Dade cities with the most COVID-19 cases in the state, according to the Florida Department of Health. Social gatherings are part of the intrinsic culture of those cities and the virus appears to be exploiting that.
The impact of the pandemic didn’t kill the regular Haulover Sandbar parties; Gimenez did. He decided to close marinas on March 21st.
On Saturday, David Guetta had a virtual fundraiser. The French DJ, who lives in Miami, didn’t wear a face mask while he played at the Icon Brickell and raised over $700,000 for nonprofits. Disclosing the location caused trouble. Some sneaked in party guests to balconies. Officers had to disperse crowds.
On April 7, a large disorderly crowd showed up to collect applications for unemployment benefits at the John F. Kennedy Library in Hialeah. There was arguing, shouting, pushing and shoving. Authorities said it was supposed to be a drive-through event, but residents decided otherwise.
Nearly 36% of the COVID-19 cases the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed in the state are in Miami-Dade, according to Florida DOH, which also reports about 27% of the state’s fatalities are in Miami-Dade.
Gimenez said not renewing his March 19 and 21st orders will not mean the existing social distancing guidelines will not be enforced as they have been.
“Miami-Dade police, along with the local police department, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Florida Fish & Wildlife also will be cracking down on anyone not following social distancing and other rules,” Gimenez said.