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Late last week as July 4th celebrations were about to kick off, Miami-Dade County mayor Carlos Gimenez announced a new nightly curfew and stricter face mask requirements countywide, including making masks required while dining at a restaurant unless eating or drinking.
For the new face mask order, Gimenez noted in his statement that “people going to restaurants will also have to keep their masks on while seated at their table — removing the mask only to eat and drink. If you are waiting for your meal at a restaurant table, keep your mask on while having a conversation with those around you.” Prior to this order, diners were allowed to remove their masks while seated at a table.
Gimenez also ordered countywide curfew of 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly for all residents except for “essential workers, workers traveling to or from their job, workers making deliveries from essential businesses, and people walking their dogs within 250 feet of their residence.” Earlier in the week, Gimenez had issued an order that banned all on-site dining at restaurants between 12:01 a.m. and 6 a.m. daily.
He noted when he issued that order that, “too many people were crowding into restaurants late at night, turning these establishments into breeding grounds for this deadly virus.”
Florida has become a hotspot for coronavirus infections in recent weeks, with more than 200,000 people testing positive since the pandemic began, and with the state hitting record-breaking daily numbers over the holiday weekend.
“I do not want to go back to closing all but essential businesses, but the only way to avoid that is for everyone to take COVID-19 seriously,” he added.
