While rest of US freezes, crowds pack Florida’s beaches
MIAMI — As a massive, historic winter storm swept across the U.S. on Monday, unloading dangerous snowfall, freezing rain and piercing wind chills, South Florida’s scorching beaches served as a hot destination for hundreds of tourists and the usual crowd of locals who enjoyed the long Presidents Day weekend by the water, despite the coronavirus pandemic.
Wearing little to no masks and barely keeping the recommended 6-foot distancing, visitors lugging suitcases and bags that displayed hotel cards paraded around South Beach throughout the day, waiting for Uber or Lyft rides, and packing the restaurants near Ocean Drive and the stores on Lincoln Road.
One tourist, Tony Johnson, 35, said he woke up Friday to 25-degree weather in Maryland, and he and a few of his friends decided to snag round-trip airplane tickets for $140 from Southwest Airlines. They escaped from the snow that same day.
“It was a spur-of-the-moment decision,” said the nursing professional, who wore pants and a T-shirt as he sat on a concrete step away from the water. “We rushed out. So much so that I forgot to pack a swimsuit. That’s why I’m not at the beach right now.”
As Johnson soaked up the sun, an unprecedented winter storm gripped most of the country. It set record-breaking low temperatures in several areas, caused major traffic accidents on icy roads and left millions of Americans without power.
But not in South Florida, where people remained mainly concerned about finding a good spot on the sand, or eating their popsicles and chugging their frozen drinks before these melted under the hot sun. Johnson said he and his friends are planning to stay in Miami until Wednesday while friends and family members back home freeze.
“They mad,” he said with a chuckle. “They jealous.”
Ramiro Delvalle, who has lived by the beach since he was about 2 years old, said the holiday crowds were smaller than he expected.
He said he likes seeing the environment “vibrant” again after being shutdown for COVID-19. But he also worries about the virus transmission in the elbow-to-elbow crowds.
“Lately, it’s been getting out of hand,” he said. “It’s unfortunate. It’s very, very sad.”
