UPDATE - May 12, 2020: The Vancouver Park Board has decided to delay a planned reopening of parking lots at many parks and beaches.
“This weekend, our staff observed larger than normal groups of people at destination beaches, as well as a notable reduction in physical distancing,” said Shauna Wilton, deputy general manager of the Vancouver Park Board, in a statement on Monday.
“While we echo Dr. Bonnie Henry’s advice to get outside, we need to ensure the public is able to do so safely and we want to remind people to access their neighbourhood spaces and refrain from driving to destination locations.”
Park rangers, who were enforcing a two-metre physical distancing guideline, issued more than 1,880 warnings last weekend alone.
The park and beach parking lots have been closed since March 23 and were slated to reopen this week.
Original story:
As Canada fights the battle against COVID-19, every part of the country enacted social distancing guidelines to slow the spread of the disease.
But as the weather warms up in places like Metro Vancouver, some people are starting to forget the importance of social distancing in the first place.
In Vancouver, many have taken to the city’s beaches and parks over the past couple of weekends, disregarding recommendations that people stick to groups of two to six when they leave their homes. The B.C. government continues to remind the public to remain vigilant against the novel coronavirus.
You can see more of Vancouver’s busy public spaces in the video above.