Coronavirus Impact: Masks Slowly Becoming Mandatory For Air Travelers
FORT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) – It's something we haven't seen in a while – a line at the airport as passengers waited to be screened.
Of note, nearly everyone is wearing a mask because of the coronavirus crisis.
"It's a precaution, a small precaution to make," said Jen, who was waiting to board a flight. "They're very fashionable," she added with a laugh.
As of May 4, masks are required if you're flying on:
- JetBlue
- Delta
- United
Beginning Friday, masks will be required on:
- Frontier Airlines
Beginning May 11, masks will be required on:
- American
- Southwest
- Alaska
- Spirit
Most passengers think it's a good idea. Passengers like Brian, who's lost several people in his life to COVID-19.
"It's real. So when it touches home, it changes perspective how you view it," he said.
Angela Anderson is traveling with her family from southwest Florida. Everyone is wearing a mask, and she thinks it's a good idea in a plane. But the Andersons normally don't wear masks.
"I have not been one to wear a mask," she said. "This is the first time that I've actually put a mask on during all this."
She's not the only one who doesn't always wear a mask.
Pictures sent to Miami Beach officials from city parks show many people not wearing masks or practicing social distancing over the weekend.
Since Friday, park personnel gave out 7,329 mask warnings and 478 for social distancing violations.
When some offenders were warned, City Manager Jimmy Morales said park rangers were "met with hostility and non-compliance."
It got so bad at South Pointe Park, it is now closed.
"There were a lot of people out there," explained City Commissioner Michael Gongora. "They were not following social distancing and they were not wearing the masks, so the manager decided to send a message that we can't open up if you're not going to follow the rules."
In Miami-Dade parks, it's simple, masks are required at all times.
In Broward, you must have a mask and wear it when you're within six feet of someone. At stores and other businesses, most people are wearing masks. They have to, to get in. The county guidelines say you must wear a mask if you provide essential services, like grocery stores and restaurant take out and you must wear one if you visit those places.
"The more people follow the orders," explained Fort Lauderdale resident Susan Brokaw. "The sooner all this starts to die out and less contamination, there is and pretty soon we're back to whatever our normal is going to be going forward."
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