What good is it having us in Florida abide by the guidelines, only to have an influx from areas that are under a lockdown?
That's exactly what's happening here in my city in PA, two hours outside of NYC.
How many people are flying from NY to FL right now, like six?
Lots of people have left. This is a NY Times article from 11 days ago:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/nyregion/Coronavirus-nyc-rich-wealthy-residents.html
Because a lot of people who live in the north have second residences in Florida, especially retirees, many of whom are in high risk groups. They're probably going to Florida because it's lower risk than where they are.
Exactly. We have a large elderly population here, who are very much at risk. And we have lots of snow birds too.
This does make sense - that they are trying to decrease THEIR risk - but since they're coming from an epicenter, they're INCREASING the risk of exposure/infection to every...single...person they come in contact with. Pretty selfish.
Yep, and it's proving itself in my city, two hours from NYC.
And they keep mentioning people "fleeing" the area which I'm not seeing.
From the article I posted above:
The Rich Have a Coronavirus Cure: Escape From New York
......
"
Broad-scale emergencies never fail to reveal the fault lines in the American class system, and it was suddenly clear that well-off New Yorkers were going to go about the business of combating the coronavirus differently, with more than fortitude and Purell, because they had a powerful inoculant: secondary real estate. As the messages flew around, the people with weekend homes — on Long Island, in Connecticut, on Cape Cod — made plans to flee to them, indefinitely.
Outside a prewar co-op on lower Fifth Avenue on Friday morning, well-dressed people were loading cats and canvas bags into their hatchbacks. “The building is empty,’’ one woman entering with her dog explained. “Everyone’s gone to the Hamptons.” "
I'm just gonna say it, because this is already implicit in a lot of posts here: Whatever you do, please don't start blaming and/or demonizing New York and New Yorkers. It's not like we purposefully got sick or are intent on infecting other people. The situation here in NYC is dire.
No one is demonizing NY-ers or NJ people on the thread so far. We're all stating facts.
I have family all over this area who are directly impacted by the virus, including cousins in Queens and Hoboken. Many of our residents travel to NYC daily for work, we have transportation vans and buses that are continuing to travel between these two areas and it has been proven that some of our cases in my city are from people coming from NYC or NJ. One from Philly, where I also have family.
Our mayor and state representative are actively trying to stop these transportation vehicles because of the spread in my city. This is not demonizing or blaming; the companies themselves will not stop out of moral obligation or personal responsibility to help prevent or control the spread. They are making money so they won't stop. I imagine the Governor of Florida is trying to do the same to help control the spread and flatten the curve. These officials have to do something when residents are pleading with them to help, because not everyone is taking their personal responsibility to stop or follow social distancing guidelines. Some simply don't care, or don't see the threat. That is selfish, regardless of where they come from.
We have thousands of people in my city with relatives in the NYC, NY and NJ areas who are bringing their ENTIRE families here. All crammed into one small house or apartment. (which also violates housing codes) These people are not quarantined when they arrive, they are going out to grocery stores, they are infecting their own families, who are in turn spreading it to businesses where they work. We desperately need help as our cases grow. We have ONE hospital in my city which will quickly become overwhelmed as our cases grow. This is not demonizing, profiling, blaming... these are the facts that we are actively trying to deal with here as more and people are getting it and spreading it. The continued transportation into the city needs to stop while they try to get control of what's happening here.
Some people are doing all they can and others are ignoring health guidelines.
This is exactly why we need enforcement of social distancing. Some people just don't care. Cuomo took video of himself driving around NYC and all the people out, acting normally. They are the ones who are not taking it seriously. We took a ride in our town yesterday and people were out playing basketball (one guy had a mask on, which won't help if hes touching the ball) and they are also the ones not taking it seriously. There were so many people out yesterday, walking around, visiting family, going to parks. Our State Police issued 27 warnings yesterday alone to businesses that are continuing to operate when they were supposed to close. Location doesn't matter, facts are what matter and the fact is not everyone is doing their part in helping to control this.
I think it's a natural reaction to, if you have the option, flee a lock down community to another location. But, it also goes against what I think the core objective is; the attempt to mitigate the progression.
I can't say that I haven't thought of the same... try to find a safe place to go like our relative's home in another state out west. But it's safer to stay put, put into practice what they are telling us with regard to social distancing, etc. When my husband and daughter come home from work, (they work for "essential" businesses that can remain open) they enter the house from another door to our basement, shower down there and throw their clothes in the washer before they come upstairs. They also wear gloves and sometimes masks, depending on where they are.
My heart goes out to everyone dealing with this. And as Cuomo said our areas here, especially NYC are just the beginning of the wave in the US. That's also not demonizing or blaming. I know you and other NY-ers are in an immediate desperate situation and I'm sorry. Other areas, like mine are trying to prevent the same from happening here, and some of our cases here are directly related to those coming from NYC area. It's not blame, it's just a fact that we have to live with here.