At Myrtle Beach’s airport, county police are breaking a law they’re supposed to enforce
The federal government for months has required everyone at airports, including people working there, to wear a mask or other face covering at all times. But for weeks, Horry County Police officers have been ignoring that rule.
On at least 10 visits to Myrtle Beach International Airport since July 5, The Sun News has observed anywhere from three to 10 Horry County Police officers not wearing masks, in violation of the federal mask mandate, which holds the force of law on public transit and inside transportation hubs across the country. During these visits, The Sun News also observed hundreds of airport passengers and airline employees failing to follow the mask requirement.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Transportation Security Administration put in the mandate on January 29. It covers all public transportation in the U.S. and lasts until Sept. 13. Types of transportation include airplanes, trains, subways, buses, taxis, ride-shares, boats, trolleys and cable cars. Private vehicles are not included.
When The Sun News contacted the airport and Horry County three weeks ago about the lack of mask-wearing and enforcement, Horry County spokeswoman Kelly Moore did not address mask wearing specifically, instead issuing the following statement:
“Horry County Police Department is operating in accordance with the guidelines from the CDC, in consideration of the job functions of law enforcement. HCPD and the Department of Airports continue to coordinate with the TSA to ensure we comply with the appropriate standards.”
TSA spokesman Mark Howell and the CDC, however, confirmed to The Sun News that if the officers aren’t wearing masks, they aren’t in compliance. There is no special carve out for law enforcement or anyone else. If you are inside the airport, you have to wear a mask, according to the CDC and TSA.
After confirming the policy with TSA, The Sun News again asked Moore a second time to defend or clarify the police department’s behavior, but again, Moore would not answer questions, avoided specifics and would only release a statement again repeating much of its first statement and claiming it is “operating in compliance” with CDC guidelines.”
The airport has directed all requests for comment on the issue of mask wearing at the airport to Moore. For months, the airport has also declined to make Horry County Director of Airports Scott Van Moppes available for interview.
Mask wearing has become a contentious issue across the country, including at airports and on planes themselves. Thousands of incidents, many of them violent, have been reported to the Federal Aviation Administration in the last year involving people refusing to wear masks.
Because of those incidents, the TSA recommends reporting people failing to wear masks to airport personnel, particularly law enforcement. On top of that, if TSA has an issue with someone refusing to wear a mask, they have to refer the case to law enforcement. TSA itself does not have the ability to arrest, detain or ticket non-compliant individuals.
“Our folks are wearing masks and we offer masks to people at the airport, especially if they come in to the checkpoint for screening and don’t have one,” TSA spokesman Mark Howell said.
“We’re relying on law enforcement. We can’t detain anybody. We’re not law enforcement,” Howell added. ”If they refuse to wear it, per the guidance, the mask mandate, that is turned over to law enforcement.”
But at Myrtle Beach International Airport, it’s law enforcement that are failing to wear masks.
David McMahon, the federal security director for TSA in South Carolina, told The Sun News several weeks ago he had spoken to the airport about its mask enforcement issues but nothing has changed at the airport since that time.
“If it becomes a systemic problem at the airport, then we can talk to the airport operator about it to fix it, which has been done,” Howell said.
This story was originally published August 11, 2021 at 2:24 PM.
