California Closes All State Beaches And Parks After Crowds Ignore Social Distancing

After the season’s first heatwave last weekend and tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people flocked to beaches in Southern California, ignoring social distancing rules, Gov. Gavin Newsom is expected to close all state beaches and parks starting Friday, according to a memo first seen by CNN.

“We wanted to give all of our members a heads up about this in order to provide time for you to plan for any situations you might expect as a result, knowing each community has its own dynamics,” the memo reads.

The closure could be announced as soon as Thursday, and state park officials, along with local law enforcement, will support efforts to close the sites, the memo adds.

The memo comes as overcrowded beaches were seen in Orange County and Ventura County last weekend as residents poured onto the coast looking for relief from the heatwave.

On Monday, Newsom blasted beachgoers:

“This virus doesn’t take the weekends off. This virus doesn’t go home. We have to manage and augment our behavior,” he said. “The only thing that will set us back is people stopping practicing physical distancing.”

At one point, estimates showed at least 90,000 beachgoers flocked to Newport Beach in Orange County.

Photos of the coast crowds have circulated social media who appear to be breaking social distancing rules.

Newport Beach appears to be pretty crowded, as Southern California is hit by a heat wave. https://t.co/abDlBmkZo0 pic.twitter.com/1DDSjvPhT5

— NBC Los Angeles (@NBCLA) April 25, 2020

The memo comes as the state is preparing to reopen the economy in phases. Newsom said the state is now in the first stage, as opening retail businesses and schools could be “weeks away.”

As confirmed cases top one million with more than 60,000 deaths across the country, President Trump is quickly trying to reopen the economy amid threats a second coronavirus could be lurking around the corner.