(CNN) – Crowds filled California’s beaches, hiking trails, and parks over the weekend in open defiance of the state order to confine themselves and avoid close contact with others.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has issued a quarantine order directing the nearly 40 million residents of the state to stay home starting March 20 to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.
People on the beach on March 21, 2020 in Huntington Beach, California.
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Instead, many public spaces were full, prompting officials in some cities to order the closure of parks, recreational areas, and beaches.
‘People filling the beaches’
The videos and photos on social media showed groups of people in close contact on popular hiking trails and beaches in Los Angeles over the weekend. Health officials urge people to keep a distance of 2 meters from each other to prevent transmission of the highly contagious virus.
In response to the crowds, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced on Twitter Sunday night that he would shut down sports and recreation in all of the city’s parks. He also tweeted that parking on city beaches was closed.
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“This weekend we saw too many people filling up beaches, trails and parks,” the mayor tweeted. He said that people should pay attention to quarantine and stay home. “That doesn’t mean meeting somewhere else. This is serious. Stay home and save lives. “
This weekend we saw too many people packing beaches, trails and parks. So we are closing sports and recreation at @LACityParks and closing parking at city beaches. That doesn’t mean gather elsewhere. This is serious. Stay home and save lives.
– Major Eric Garcetti (@MayorOfLA) March 23, 2020
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Garcetti told KTLA, an affiliate of CNN, which was working with officials in neighboring cities and the county to address large crowds on the beaches.
Meanwhile, the city of Santa Monica Hill its parking lot on the beach on Sunday to discourage people from flocking to the beach.
Nearby, the city of Malibu emitted an additional guide urging residents to keep a safe distance if they were going outside for a walk or to go to the beach. The city-owned parks and trails were also closed to the public.
Further south, the city of Long Beach closed many of its recreational facilities. On Sunday night, Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia said in a tweet that the city had closed skate parks, dog parks, playgrounds, picnic areas, and volleyball, tennis, and basketball courts.
The city is trying to dissuade people from team sports and encourage them to maintain a social distance of 2 meters when using the city’s facilities.
Garcia tweeted that the city is also seeking to establish an additional guide for the use of its beaches.
He said the responsibility falls on residents to abide by the rules since public safety teams cannot enforce orders.
To be clear, the Governor and City’s order does allow people to go for a walk or visit a park or beach. However, you must still use social distancing. You can’t play team sports, and you must stay 6 feet apart from anyone else.
– Mayor Robert Garcia (@LongBeachMayor) March 22, 2020
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“There are more and more signs on the beaches and courts, and we will seek to enforce more, but our public safety teams are incredibly busy,” Garcia tweeted. “We need people to take responsibility and remember that our doctors, nurses, and medical staff count on us.”
California was not the only place where people ignored orders to stay home and maintain social distance.
The beaches closed and navigation was banned in Florida
This weekend, several videos showed large groups of people partying in boats and tying up their watercraft in Miami’s Biscayne Bay and on the outskirts of Boca Raton.
