Horry County gears up for a busy Memorial Day weekend despite coronavirus pandemic
Horry County will beef up public safety for Memorial Day weekend in anticipation of a large tourist presence despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Assistant Administrator for Public Safety Randy Webster said the county is preparing for a mostly “traditional Memorial Day Weekend” after seeing the amount of tourists within the Grand Strand after last week.
Typically Memorial Day includes the Atlantic Beach Bikefest. While the event is officially postponed, public safety leaders are planning for many people to come. Myrtle Beach could put up the controversial barricades along Ocean Boulevard to manage traffic as it has in years past.
Hotels, beaches and restaurants are all open with some restrictions. Gov. Henry McMaster said earlier Tuesday that he has no plans to close the beaches again even after the crowds last weekend.
“Law enforcement will be on hand and law enforcement has the authority to disperse crowds if necessary if it is a health threat,” McMaster said.
McMaster added the state always has plans to help coastal cities on busy weekends like Memorial Day and will do so for the coming weekend.
Local leaders requested an additional 100 officers from across South Carolina to assist local police, making sure there are enough EMS and firefighters and having special divisions like SWAT or negotiation teams available.
Right now there isn’t a clear idea of how many people are coming, but they anticipate that a lot of “day trippers” will decide to come in without booking a hotel room, Webster said.
Still, the public safety officers are prepared for any emergency that might arise.
“I feel really confident that our law enforcement group will rise to the challenge, but our hope is it will be a calm weekend,” Webster said. “We hope everyone here has a great time, and our crews will keep everyone as safe as possible.”
