‘Still gotta live’: Beach goers out to combat boredom, but distancing on the Strand
It is supposed to be spring break week in Myrtle Beach — toes in the sand, a brave dip in the chilly ocean water and crowded beaches.
“It’s quiet,” said Diana Bartosik as she walked alone near the waves on Wednesday, not another person within a stone’s throw. “It’s definitely quiet, that’s for sure.”
Bartosik walked along the beach at 45th Avenue North and went hundreds of yards before running into another person. Something that usually doesn’t happen in mid-March, but coronavirus fears reduced the crowd sizes along the Grand Strand beaches.
Despite many government buildings and parks being closed, beaches in Myrtle Beach and Horry County remain open. Though, Myrtle Beach officials say they are reviewing recommendations and will notify the public of changes.
While not as typically crowded as previous years, COVID-19 concerns haven’t kept all locals and vacationers away from the beach.
“Last week, plenty of kids, now …” Bartosik said, waving her hands in a “no” motion.
Bartosik said she walks along the beach every day as her form of exercise. She said she couldn’t sit inside and watch television all day. That was a common expression among locals at the beach.
“I can’t be in the house 24/7,” said Carol Fitzgerald as she looked for shark teeth near 9th Avenue South.
The Murrells Inlet resident said she comes to Myrtle Beach because there are no teeth on the Garden City beach. She said people are still out having fun, though social distancing is keeping everybody at least six feet from each other.
If it was a typical spring break week, the beach would have been much more crowded, Fitzgerald said.
Fitzgerald works in a laundry service for some of the hotels and she said one had hundreds of cancellations because of COVID-19 fears.
Ramon Campbell came from North Carolina to Myrtle Beach for spring break. He said he didn’t want the fear to stop his trip, though he brought down cleaning supplies and had a face mask in the car as extra precautions. He also got a good deal for his hotel room because of the cancellations.
“Still gotta live,” Campbell said. He added it was important not to stop his normal activities just because of concern over the disease.
John Agner visited Myrtle Beach with his family from Indiana and the group headed to the beach with the hotel pool closed and, finally, some warmer weather.
He said the fear didn’t ruin the getaway too much. They still could ride go-karts and the lines were short because of the people who opted to cancel plans.
“We’re still having fun,” Agner said. “It’s nothing too bad.”
Photographer Jason Lee contributed to this report.
This story was originally published March 18, 2020 at 3:32 PM.
