- February 1, 2025
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With 102 reported cases of COVID-19 in Volusia County, all beaches will be closed, effective 12 a.m. Friday, April 3.
The decision was announced 24 hours after Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a statewide stay-at-home order, also effective at midnight. The executive order tells residents to "limit their movements and personal interactions outside of their home to only those necessary to obtain or provide essential services or conduct essential activities."
People who violate the order and head to the beach will face second-degree misdemeanors with a $500 fine, said County Manager George Recktenwald during a press conference on Thursday, April 2. Volusia County Beach Safety's 54 officers will enforce this new order. All off-beach parking lots, county-owned walkovers and coastal parks will be closed. A double-red flag will be flown, signaling the beach's closure.
The order does allow for recreational activities such as walking, biking and hiking (at parks and trails, not on the beach) as long as residents follow social distancing guidelines, but Volusia County is asking residents limit their movements to stay close to their homes and neighborhoods.
"As a country, and even worldwide, we're dealing with something we've never faced before," Recktenwald said. "When we turn on the news, there's a lot of information that just isn't good. But I think it's important to remember there is still a lot of good out there."
Residents can still leave their homes to buy groceries and necessary items. Bus service — all except Route 25 servicing Howland Boulevard — will continue to run and all fares have been waived. Government offices will be closed to the public except by appointment, and essential public services like garbage and recycling will run as customary.
An outdoor burn ban will also take effect at midnight due to a current high risk for wildfires.
Recktenwald stressed residents should try to stay home as much as possible.
“In short, the Safer At Home order emphasizes the same messaging we’ve been pushing all along," Recktenwald said.
Regarding travel into Volusia, the Daytona Beach International Airport is screening passengers of all incoming flights.
No curfew has been put into place at this time. Daytona Beach has since repealed its curfew as the governor's executive order, which doesn't call for a statewide curfew, states that it "shall supersede any conflicting official action or order issued by local officials in response to COVID-19 but only to the extent that such action or order allows essential services or essential activities prohibited by this Executive Order."
Volusia County Sheriff Chitwood said we're at the beginning of this pandemic, not the end, and that residents should refrain from hosting parties in their homes.
"A lot of what the government does is a response to what the people are not doing," Chitwood said. If you don't want to follow the orders, then we're going to be left with no other choice than to issue a curfew, close the boat ramps and make life a little bit tougher. We don't want to do that."
A trip out to the beach could cost you your life, or the life of a loved one, Chitwood said.
"Why risk that?" Chitwood said. "We're asking for 30 days to follow these guidelines, respect your fellow residents and the rest of this community and do what we're asking you to do."
Also at the press conference were the chief medical officers from both Halifax Health and AdventHealth DeLand, Dr. Margaret G. Crossman and Dr. Joe Smith, respectively.
Smith said that though they anticipate a rise of cases, the hospitals are ready to handle COVID-19.
Crossman said the case fatality rate in the U.S. will likely be less than the 5% in Wuhan, China, as the country has had more time to prepare. Of the 9,000 cases in Florida, Crossman said the majority will only have a mild case.
The key to flattening the curve, both doctors said, is to continue practicing social distancing.
Should residents wear masks?
"We're beginning to see some community spread, a little bit, and so it is not unreasonable," Crossman said.
This story was updated at 12:47 p.m. on Friday, April 3, to clarify residents cannot any sort of recreational activity on the beaches.
