The cancellation of spring break in Florida was inevitable with the entire globe put on pause during the coronavirus pandemic.
Or so people thought.
Photos of Florida's crowded beaches were seen across the internet causing anger and disbelief. Allowing tens of thousands of college and high school aged students to ignore public health warnings from the CDC was labeled a cash grab.
The state's GOP governor was accused of putting a priority on tourism dollars over the lives of Floridians.
But on Thursday, Florida's Republican Governor Ron DeSantis finally announced the "party's over" after getting slammed for keeping beaches, bars and other meeting spots open for days.
People were outraged over the amount of time it took for the Governor to announce his decision.
The Republican Governor told Fox & Friends:
"The message I think for spring breakers is that the party's over in Florida."
You can watch the interview in the clip, below.
Gov. DeSantis to Florida spring breakers: 'The party's over'youtu.be
"You're not going to be able to congregate on any beach in the state. Many of the hot spots that people like to go to, whether it's Miami beach, Fort Lauderdale and Clearwater Beach are closed entirely for the time being."
"We would tell those folks maybe come back next year when things are better, but that is not what we're looking for."
Footage of spring breakers cramming the beaches went viral despite everyone being told to adopt social distancing guidelines in an effort to contain the virus.
For Clearwater Beach, it was business as usual last week.
However, DeSantis claimed that any footage of the crowded beaches from Saturday were from before the CDC's guidance limiting the congregation of groups of 250 or more.
By Monday, that guidance was lowered to a restriction of groups with no more than ten people.
With many institutions shut down—including a nearly unprecedented closure of Walt Disney World in its nearly 50-year history—Chuck Smithson, who was visiting from Ohio, took his family to the beach after discovering Mickey had drawn up the castle's drawbridge indefinitely.
Before DeSantis made his announcement about closing the beaches, Smithson told 10News.
"We were supposed to go to Disney, actually, the day they closed it."
"I'm shocked the beaches aren't shut down. I mean we need something to do, other than sit inside, but I'm shocked the beaches aren't shut down."
Despite the social distancing directive, Smithson was among thousands of other vacationers and college students who refused to let any crisis put a damper on their hedonistic agendas.
One reveler said:
"If I get corona, I get corona. At the end of the day, I'm not gonna let it stop me from partying."
These youngsters fail to comprehend they are likely to spread the virus—despite their strong immune systems—to their grandparents or other people who are more susceptible to catching and dying from COVID-19.
@PW_Fandom/Twitter
DeSantis did say he would not close down every beach in the sunshine state to groups of less than 10 people, but mentioned that the ones remaining open will have to abide by the CDC's virus prevention guidelines.
He added:
"Regardless of local decisions, you're not going to be able to congregate like those images that you saw."
"That's just not something that we are going to allow and so you want to work constructively with the locals to get the best solutions."
Still, Florida's beachgoers are not panicked.
Their lack of awareness incited condemnation from social media and politicians like the governor's predecessor and fellow Republican, Florida Senator Rick Scott.
He issued a stern order for the spring breakers turning a blind eye to the crisis.
"Get off the beach."
The former governor—who put himself in self-quarantine after meeting with a Brazilian government aide at Mar-a-Lago who tested positive for COVID-19—told CNN's John Berman on New Day:
"What are you thinking about by being on the beach around all these people that might have coronavirus and you're going to go home and potentially infect the people you love the most."
"What are you thinking? Stop doing it now!"
Some people think the beach closures were too late.
For spring breakers lamenting their lost opportunity for frivolity, they will have to wait until next year.
@elleuk/Instagram
@elleuk/Instagram
