"The virus is not resting at weekends" : the governor of California reminded Monday of the reason for the thousands of people who rushed to certain beaches that remained open despite the instructions for confinement against the coronavirus. Thanks to temperatures above 30 ° C, many Californians flocked to the beaches of Orange and Ventura counties on Saturday and Sunday, which were not closed by local authorities, unlike those in neighboring Los Angeles County. Most of them were not wearing masks but followed the instructions for social distancing, said local police, who recalled the instructions but did not verbalize.
"These images that we saw this weekend, in Orange County and Ventura, are the very example of what we do not want to see, what we should not do if we want to continue the significant progress made in recent weeks, " said Governor Gavin Newsom during a press conference via the Internet. "The virus is not resting on weekends, it does not come home because it is a sunny day on our shores," he said, saying that the rules had been followed in " the overwhelming majority " of the state despite these " exceptions " .
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Unlike other states in the United States, California quickly implemented widespread containment measures, which helped contain the spread of the coronavirus and prevent congestion in hospitals, which has resulted in many deaths, experts say. To date, nearly 45,000 cases of Covid-19 and 1,753 deaths have been recorded in California, a relatively modest assessment for a state which was one of the main foci at the start of the health crisis.
“The only thing that can make us regress is that people stop respecting social distancing. It's the only thing that will slow our ability to reopen the economy, " said Governor Newsom. If he raised his voice, Gavin Newsom said, however, that he wanted to give priority to education over repression at this stage. "I think it's a better approach. If someone has lost their job, the last thing they want is to be fined while walking their dog or while they are at the beach with their family, " argued the governor, who said does not exclude sanctions for those who abuse "and endanger the lives of others" .
This Monday, several other beaches announced their reopening in the county of San Diego, with restrictions: their attendance is reserved for fishermen, surfers, bathers, joggers, walkers, paddle boarders, or kayakers ... It remains however prohibited to sit there, to take a sunbath or to gather there.
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