Here’s Horry County Council’s recommendations after deciding to end face mask mandate
After a raucous and occasionally confusing meeting, Horry County Council members voted Tuesday night to end the county’s emergency ordinance that included a mandate that residents and visitors wear face masks inside grocery stores and other businesses.
That means the mandate will formally last until Oct. 30, when it is set to expire. However, council members also voted Tuesday to amend the language of the mandate, meaning that face masks are now only “strongly encouraged” rather than “required.”
The change of language, plus Horry County’s lax enforcement of the mask mandate to date, means that residents and visitors no longer have to wear a face covering as of Tuesday night, but are “strongly encouraged” to do so.
The move comes as cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, have spiked in Horry County in recent weeks. The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) has reported more than 1,500 cases in the county since Oct. 1, with a peaks of 149 new cases reported on Oct. 9 and 123 new cases reported on Oct. 12.
It also comes as North Myrtle Beach, which recently renewed its face mask ordinance, has seen 210 new COVID-19 cases in the past two weeks. At least 14 of those cases have been linked to an unofficial shag dancing event hosted in North Myrtle Beach in late September. Other highly-populated areas in Horry County, like Myrtle Beach, still have face mask requirements in effect.
How it happened
In a 12-0 vote, even those who had previously supported the mask mandated voted with the rest of Horry County Council to not extend the county’s COVID-19 emergency ordinance. That emergency ordinance gave the county spending power and other abilities to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, and included a mandate that all residents and visitors shopping at a grocery store, pharmacy or other business wear a face covering while inside. The emergency ordinance and mask mandate will remain in effect until Oct. 30, and will end at midnight.
At Tuesday’s meeting, some council members attempted to keep the mask mandate in place. First, council member Gary Loftus, who represents part of Myrtle Beach, asked for a vote to delay making a decision on the face mask ordinance. Rather than voting on the emergency ordinance and the face mask mandate Tuesday night, Loftus said he wanted to call a special meeting of council on Oct. 30 to vote on the measure then. He also said waiting until then would buy council more time, as COVID-19 cases continue to trickle in day by day.
That suggestion was voted down handily, 10-2, with only Loftus and Council member Harold Worley, who represents North Myrtle Beach, voting for it.
Then, council member Tyler Servant, who represents Garden City and part of Surfside Beach, suggested changing the emergency ordinance so that it would “strongly encourage” people to wear face masks, but not “require” them. A vote to amend the face mask mandate with the softer language, seemingly a move to make keeping the whole emergency ordinance in place more palatable, passed 10-2, with council member Bill Howard and Worley voting against it.
After it seemed clear that council could vote to end the entire emergency ordinance, along with the face mask mandate, Worley called for a recess, and council members huddled in a conference room, appearing and disappearing for several minutes.
When council was back in session, members voted again, with some getting confused on if they were voting on the language amendment or on the whole emergency ordinance. Worley implored members to vote in favor of extending the emergency ordinance and the mask mandate.
“The numbers are going in the wrong direction for us to be doing this, friends,” he said. “As a community leader I believe that’s what we should do. Damn politics when it comes to life and death. I believe this mask can’t hurt, but it could possibly help.”
Shortly after, council voted 12-0 to allow the emergency ordinance to expire on Oct. 30, but with the amendment to soften the mask mandate language. Worley then called for a separate vote to reinstate the emergency ordinance, a move that would have caused council to place the emergency ordinance back on the agenda after voting to end it. That move was rejected, and council’s 12-0 vote stood.
What happens now
Until Oct. 30 at midnight, all Horry County residents and visitors are still required to wear a face covering — whether a medical or surgical mask, scarf, bandanna, cloth mask or gaiter — if they’re entering a public place such as a grocery store, restaurant, retail business, salon or tattoo parlor. Residents and visitors do not have to wear masks in public places that are outdoors, such as parks and beaches.
Exemptions still apply. People who can’t safely wear a face covering due to age or an underlying health condition, as well as those can’t remove a face covering without assistance of others, don’t have to wear a mask. Similarly, people whose religious beliefs prevent them from covering their faces and those who need to communicate with a hearing impaired person aren’t required to wear one either. People are also permitted to remove their masks while dining at a restaurant, engaged in “strenuous exercise” at a gym and when a barber, hair stylist or other professional requires access to the face to perform a service, like a haircut. Masks may also be removed if a police officer or other first-responder directs a person to do so.
Orton Bellamy, who represents Conway, said even though he voted against extending the ordinance, he encourages his constituents to wear a face covering.
Council could, however, between now and Oct. 30, call a special meeting to again debate a mask mandate or extend the emergency ordinance. County Council Chairman Johnny Gardner, the member with the power to call such a meeting, said Tuesday night that he is not considering doing so.
Gardner said that he supported ending the emergency ordinance and mask mandate, in part, because it was confusing for people to understand and difficult to enforce. The mask mandate in particular only ever applied to the unincorporated areas of Horry County, not the towns or cities., meaning that a person could be subject to different rules depending on where they went.
“We didn’t want to have a mandate,” Gardner said. “It’s hard to enforce.”
He added: “All we’re saying is, Horry County is not extending the mandate. We are encouraging people to wear the masks. We’re not saying anything is over we’re just ending the mandate.”
Loftus, who previously voted in favor of the mask mandate, disagreed.
“My daddy said, if you really can’t say anything nice, best to not say anything,” he said after the meeting. “I think we’re making a terrible, terrible mistake.”
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Editor’s note: This story has been amended to reflect that Horry County’s face mask mandate is still in effect until Oct. 30.
This story was originally published October 20, 2020 at 9:00 PM with the headline "Here’s Horry County Council’s recommendations after deciding to end face mask mandate."
