South Carolina to reopen public beaches, retail stores next week amid pandemic

[left-of-center2012]

Source: The Hill

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) on Monday will announce the reopening of public beaches and retail stores that had been closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Post and Courier reported.

The impending restriction rollbacks follow McMaster's announcement that access to public boat ramps and landings was reinstated on Friday. Trey Walker, the governor's chief of staff, told the paper that the beaches as well as furniture, jewelry and clothing stores will all be reopened for business on Tuesday.

Beaches and retail stores have been closed for just over two weeks in the Palmetto State as it tried to curb the spread of the virus. Walker told The Post and Courier that infection rates dropped enough to make easing restrictions feasible.

The paper noted that social distancing will still be enforced on the state's beaches. The state has more than 4,000 confirmed cases of the virus and 116 deaths, according to data compiled by The New York Times.

On Friday, Texas became the first state to lay out a defined rollback of COVID-19 restrictions, with Gov. Greg Abbott (R) saying that businesses in the state would being to reopen next week through a series of executive orders.

Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/493501-south-carolina-to-reopen-public-beaches-retail-stores-next-week-amid

[machoneman]

1. Only two weeks? What fools!

Well, at least we now know lots and lots of South Carolinians will die unecessarily in the quest to be the dumbest folks on the planet. Hope their grab for the gusto eliminates lots and lots of Republiscum voters beefore the election. Count on it!

[Rebl2]

2. Please proceed

and see what happens. I am guessing more deaths.

[underpants]

3. My god. Not ALL of the Myrtle Beach tshirt stores with sharks on the front

Not ALL of them!!!!!

I hope he has the wisdom to keep putt putt under wraps.

[left-of-center2012]

4. My brother lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

He was a Tea Party supporter, and is now a Trump supporter.
Oh, and an evangelical christian.

[Throckmorton]

9. Moved there for two years and fled back to Connecticut

Hurricane Florence taught me all I needed to know about the hillbilly Riviera.

[weissmam]

16. all require a certain degree of brain power

as little as possible

[jpak]

5. Fort Sumpter redux

Yup

[BarbD]

6. Interesting experiment

Nice to see they are confident that South Carolina is different from the rest of the world. Let us know how that works out.

Fox News can interview them. Maybe Trump can hold a rally.

[Igel]

10. It's open but not quite.

How enforcement and compliance go will be important here. The OP sort of glosses over anything that might make it less egregious.

From the source the OP derives from (https://www.postandcourier.com/health/covid19/sc-to-reopen-public-beach-accesses-retail-stores-closed-under-coronavirus-crackdowns/article_f3d96f28-81aa-11ea-b860-af3ef00c2f4c.html)

Social distancing will be enforced on the state’s 187 miles of coastline with authorities allowed to charge groups of three or more considered a health threat. People had been able to access beaches, rivers and lakes on private property.

Local governments can still make their own rules about waterway access. Some beach towns — including Sullivan’s Island, Isle of Palms and Folly Beach — have banned access to nonresidents.

All S.C. stores are expected to limit occupancy to five customers per 1,000 square feet of retail space or 20 percent occupancy, whichever is less. Many retailers, including grocery and hardware stores and gun shops, have been allowed to remain open during the outbreak.

[DAMANgoldberg]

7. Speaking selfishly, of course

I hope that York County, South Carolina DOES NOT open anything until the rest of the Metro area does. Sort of a regional pact if you will. Also the Indian Land portions of Lancaster County. The other 44 counties in South Carolina, well.

[Shermann]

11. Hello fellow Yorkinian

Is that even a word?

Or is it Yorker?

[DAMANgoldberg]

12. I live in NW Charlotte, but...

I think of the Metro area as one unit, especially the inner counties, Meck., Union, Cabarrus, Gaston, York, E. Lincoln, & S. Iredell. Essentially 25 mile radius from the Square.

What happens in York and Indian Land affects us here as well, so that is my point. Covid-19 doesn't respect state or county lines.

I'm actually not sure what they call themselves, though I have known people who live on that side of Carowinds.

[mwb970]

8. I would have suggested experimenting with a red state anyway. Let's see what happens.

[oldsoftie]

13. Customers of mine in SC have been closed far longer than two weeks

[KY_EnviroGuy]

14. Can yaw'll just imagine the shitshow this will turn into.....

during the prime summer vacation season?

Anyone that's lived around the Grand Strand can't even imagine.......

And "social distancing will still be enforced on the state's beaches"? There ain't enough cops in America to come close.

[turbinetree]

15. Alrighty........... two red state lab rat testing will be done in real time.................

and Walker is now a doctor, right along with Abbott (TX) and the clusterfuck has now begun, did Walker read that within the Canadian and US borders the restriction is still in place for another 30 days............South Carolina Lab Rats, Texas Lab Rats, Florida Lab Rats...........you idiots don't have any tests......................

[KatyMan]

23. In Texas

Only things opening this week are curbside pickup and some non emergency procedures. Our schools are closed for the rest of the year. As far as testing, we compare with California.

Texas has fared ok.....less than 20k cases (although not much testing) but less than 500 deaths--17 per million. Very low. We are quite naturally social distanced anyway. Even big cities are spread out and no mass transit. Most Texas schools have been out since around the middle of March and many companies sent workers home March 17. Gyms, restaurants and bars have also been closed since then. We currently have a surplus of hospital beds, ICU beds and ventilators.
I am not a fan of Gov. Hotwheels and I am thankful he doesn't really have a lot of power. Power mostly rests with county officials and mayors. Texas governorship powers are weak by design.

[mahina]

33. No mass transit?

There’s no mass transit there under normal conditions?

Beautiful country...I remember driving through as a kid twice. There was a hilly green part that had a lot of horses that I liked a lot.

[KatyMan]

34. Unfortunately correct

Just lots of vehicles and endless highways. Cities, like Houston, do ha e buses and a light rail, but so many live in the suburbs....

The hilly green area would be the Texas hill country. Arguably the best part of the state

[KatyMan]

24. Please clarify

To whom you are referring when you say "you idiots"

[turbinetree]

29. Anyone that doesn't have a mask on when they go out in public and stand at some capital are idiots

Protests in Maryland, Texas and Ohio against coronavirus stay-at-home orders – video report

https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2020/apr/19/protests-maryland-texas-ohio-coronavirus-stay-at-home-orders-video-report

these people are "idiots"...................and they are being led and incited by trolls..............and they should be charged with reckless endangerment every last one of them...............

or when a governor decides to open "retail" malls or other places.................and does not have enough "TESTS" to see who has the virus................ ...................idiots

https://www.newschannel10.com/2020/04/17/governor-abbott-makes-plans-re-open-texas/

[Stuart G]

17. ..STUPID....is still...STUPID...IS STUPID. AND STUPID IS INDEED STUPID!!!!

[Botany]

18. And Trump, Fox News, and Vlad are all pushing this madness. Do they want us to die?

S. Carolina has yet to see "the beast" in its full figured death wind. What happened in NYC
will be there.

The only ways we have to fight "the beast" right now is shut downs, social distancing, staying @ home,
testing and then tracing but now for political reasons the GOP in S. Carolina is going against what
has been proven actions.

This is madness.

[Aerator]

19. Probable cases

Even on South Carolina’s-own Coved 19 website they list over 4000 confirmed cases with over 28,000 probable cases.

[Stuart G]

20. Prediction..On Sunday he will reverse this order..just saying "I don't know nothing"

[Bayard]

21. I have a bunch of relatives in SC

My parents were from there.

[olddad65]

22. Looks like there is going to be some 'natural selection' going on in SC

[Sancho]

25. I grew up in SC...and I'll never return there. Best of luck to my crazy relatives in Charleston...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=20&v=RGdeWfQBeRE&feature=emb_logo&fbclid=IwAR0W__UW4nc6YfPTTjx_Qk7Abua_oNMFZmpMoTz2KIpO_kvq1hL21l_vNSk

[left-of-center2012]

26. this

[Sancho]

27. Thanks...not sure how you did that...

[left-of-center2012]

28. You ...

Right click on the YouTube video as it plays on YouTube.
That will give you the 'video URL'.

Click on that, and post on DU.

[OneCrazyDiamond]

30. It sounds like

Right wing states will have herd immunity first, but at what cost?

[CottonBear]

31. Oh F***K! I'm in GA surrounded by idiot states!

We share a small border w/ NC, which is more sensible. But, AL, FL, TN & SC are all crazy!
(At least GA is mostly shut down.)

[pawismom]

32. These comments are disgusting!

I am from and live just south of Myrtle Beach and am extremely offended by the sanctimonious comments being made here. Ya'll (yes, I use that hillbilly word) seem to be wishing death and mayhem on all red (especially southern) states and the people who live there. You think your insults and ridicule are somehow different than what Trump spews? You think it is less painful because we are all such idiots here? You think it makes you sound classier, smarter, more awake? No, it doesn't. My parents were born and raised in rural South Carolina in abject poverty and managed to educate themselves at the inferior University of South Carolina. My father was an engineer who rose to the top but always supported and helped Democratic politicians and causes. They traveled the world, as I did, then retired and died here at the beach. Till the day my mom died she contributed to Planned Parenthood, Emily's List, and to many others; her favorite being an Indian Reservation in South Dakota because we had lived there a while and she saw the destitution and she never forgot. Their children and grandchildren have all followed in their footsteps. I have pictures of my father with Bill Clinton, Al Gore and numerous other Democratic politicians. I have a niece who lives in our capital and is heavily involved in many progressive causes, voters rights, and especially LGBTQ rights; and she is heterosexual and married. I have a niece living overseas who used to work as a lawyer for our Democratic state senators. Upon her return she will probably run for the United States Congress as a Democrat for the state of South Carolina. I want to ask, if our sate is so god awful then why do you flood our beaches every summer? Why do so many of you retire here? I will say that the transplants here from New Jersey and New York seem to be Trumps biggest supporters. So. rather than just mock us why don't you try and help us. Jamie Harrison is running against Lindsey Graham for his US Senate seat. He has the best chance anyone has ever had of defeating him. Some polls show him with even a slight lead. Make calls for him. Donate to his campaign because Lindsey will have money flooding in and we need to be able to continue to fight him. Main thing is if you can't or won't help us in red states who are trying to make changes then at least don't try and make things worse for those of us who are. Your attitude and comments hurt, they don't help anyone.