“We must emphasize that this is more deadly than influenza for all [and] that people who don’t die often face a very long and painful or frustrating recovery process, “Scarpino said.” It’s not just about mortality, it’s about quality of life in the future. “
Over the weekend, there were scenes of young people largely cluttered with beaches in South Boston and standing shoulder-to-shoulder on Saturday night on a Boston Harbor cruise. Many did not wear masks or social distancing.
Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh, in a statement Sunday, warned that people must follow those rules to help protect public health.
“We know very well the serious health consequences of the coronavirus, and it is very worrying to see the crowds of people gathering in large groups, putting themselves, everyone around them, and everyone they come in contact with,” Walsh said. . “It is up to each person and each business to take this seriously and follow the public health guide that has been issued for the safety of all.”
Nineteen more people have died from the coronavirus, the state reported Sunday, as the number of confirmed deaths rose to 8,310. The confirmed cases of the disease increased in 273 and reached a total of 108,380.
Calls for people to follow the health guideline come as the state is asking the local school district to develop plans that include reopening its buildings in the fall.
Those reopening efforts were backed by Vice President Pence, who pledged federal support to help Massachusetts reopen its K-12 schools during a visit Saturday with Governor Charlie Baker in Nantucket.
Pence told reporters after the meeting that the Trump administration believes it is best for children to return to the classroom. In addition to academics, children receive other services at school, including counseling and special education, Pence said.
State school officials are still working to determine whether to reopen, hold virtual classes, or provide a hybrid of the two.
Scarpino said he agrees that one of the top priorities for the state should be to reopen schools. But to do it safely, the state needs to expand its testing capacity and get results of those tests in less than 24 hours. You should also continue to keep new case numbers low, particularly as some K-12 schools reopen and college students return.
“But I am skeptical, we will be able to do it if we have a situation that is even a little worse than it is now,” Scarpino said. “And that means that everything we do in the next few weeks, plus or minus a month, will largely determine how successful we will be with schools in the fall.”
Another challenge facing officials working to achieve public cooperation against the coronavirus has been heat, which draws people to the beaches and makes it difficult for people to remain masked.
After Boston peaked at 91 on Sunday, more heat is expected on Monday and Tuesday, when forecasters predict the city will peak in the mid-1990s, said Bill Simpson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. The high temperatures and humidity will also help raise the heat index to around 102 on Monday, he said.
The weather service issued an excessive heat warning for Greater Boston from noon Monday to 8 p.m. Tuesday, when highs are also expected in the mid-1990s, which would officially mark the start of a heat wave for the city. , said.
In Boston, where Walsh declared a heat emergency Sunday through Tuesday, he opened 21 community facilities throughout the city that function as cooling centers and two public pools that require prior reservation. The three sessions for the pools were booked on Sunday.
M Street Beach was busy on Sunday, as it has been for the past few weeks, with groups of people splashing the sand, the vast majority wearing no masks.
Near Carson Beach, Janderson Gomes, 32, of Allston, sat on a bench overlooking the shoreline and enjoying the ocean breeze with a friend, without wearing a mask.
Gomes, who works for a moving company and as a kitchen manager, said he wanted an opportunity to relax. Sitting at home feels “tight,” he said and confined. Being on the beach reminded him of Brazil, where he grew up.
“Just hang up, look at everyone. The bad, you let it go, “said Gomes. “You can’t be 100 percent sure. There is no way.”
Brendan Lanoue, 32, of Medford, and a friend said they wore their masks while walking to their place in the Carson Beach arena, and removed the liners once they were installed away from other people.
He compared it to dining out at a restaurant: As long as no one on the beach got too close, he felt more secure. And during the four hours he spent on the beach on Sunday, he said that people were respectful and concerned about their personal space.
“It was good,” he said. “The wind also feels good.”
Away from the beach, another sign of people ignoring the precautions was evident Saturday night when crowds of people were seen standing shoulder to shoulder without masks on a cruise ship in Boston Harbor.
Marty Walz, a former state representative who watched from Pier 4 when the ship set sail around 7:15 p.m., posted a photograph of the crowded ship on Twitter.
She said many of the people were not wearing masks when they gathered to board and called the ship’s operator, the Bay State Cruise Company, irresponsible for not requiring passengers to take precautions.
“I was shocked and scared that we are going to have another serious COVID outbreak, and things are going to be as bad as in March and April,” Walz, a South Boston resident, said in a telephone interview Sunday. “I couldn’t help but wonder why so many people were willing to be so reckless.”
The city’s Department of Inspection Services and the Environment Division of the Boston Public Health Commission have contacted the company and will visit the site on Monday, according to city officials.
A WCVB-TV news team filmed passengers Saturday as they disembarked from the ship, although people gave conflicting accounts about adhering to the masks and social estrangement during the trip.
A woman told the news station that “no one wore a mask” on board, while a man said he wore a mask throughout the trip.
Julie Pagano of the Bay State Cruise Company, which operates Provincetown II, told the Globe in an email Sunday that the ship was on a cruise from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturday and precautions were observed.
The ship provides enough room for 6 feet of space per passenger for up to 44 percent of the ship’s capacity, he said.
On Saturday night, the ship sailed at 33 percent of capacity, he said.
“The general information is that, in addition to providing ample space for social distancing, we are an outdoor location with the benefit of a constant breeze through the decks as we navigate at nine knots,” said Pagano.
Scarpino, the epidemiologist, said researchers are still working on how transmission of this virus works. He said officials should take steps to avoid such scenes in the future.
“Certainly seeing crowded party barges is not the kind of scene we would like to witness before the fall,” Scarpino said.
Jessica Rinaldi / Balloon Staff
Gal Tziperman Lotan can be contacted at [email protected] or 617-929-2043. Lucas Phillips can be contacted at [email protected]. John Hilliard can be contacted at [email protected].
