Members of the national news media owe apologies to Florida mayors for causing a "frenzy" while reporting on their decisions to reopen beaches in mid-April, as data show significant declines in coronavirus hospitalizations in their county, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday.
“I think apologies can be sent to the city of Jacksonville, attention Mayor [Lenny] Curry,” said DeSantis, while addressing the national media, reports Breitbart. “You may want to CC the mayors of Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach and Atlantic Beach. But I won’t hold my breath on that happening.”
Their beaches are located in Duval County, which remains the lowest of the state's metropolitan areas on new coronavirus cases.
The governor showed graphs displaying declines in intensive care unit admissions, virus hospitalizations, and the use of ventilators in Duval County.
"Those people were wrong and the folks in Duval County behaved appropriately,” he said about the reporters, calling on them to stop causing a "frenzy" and urged them to quit "allowing things to get carried away."
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry Tuesday announced that all county beach restrictions were to be lifted on Wednesday and that the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens will reopen to the public this weekend, reports the Jacksonville Daily Record. There will be no restrictions at the beach, as sunbathing, sitting and other activities are allowed, but Curry urged beachgoers to be "cautious and responsible," not to gather in groups of more than 10 people, and to keep as much distance as possible between groups.
“While this is a positive step, I continue to urge the people of Jacksonville to be cautious and responsible,” he said.
There will be restrictions at the zoo to protect the animals and staff, as well as the public, Curry said.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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