‘The Keys are not open.’ Highway checkpoints see a rise in visitors trying to enter
Deputies staffing the two coronavirus checkpoints into the Florida Keys saw an increase in the number of people trying to get through who were not authorized to enter the island chain.
The numbers increased as the Keys prepared to ease some of its restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19, including restaurants and retail stores allowed to open but at 25 percent of occupancy. That first wave of reopening took effect on Monday morning in Monroe County.
The number of cars refused entry at the checkpoints on Monday was not available yet.
Keys officials think some people on the mainland are receiving mixed messages.
But the relaxation of the rules for locals does not mean visitors are allowed to come back to the Keys yet. The two checkpoints, one on the 18 Mile Stretch of U.S. 1 and the other on County Road 905, are still operating until further notice.
“The Keys are not open,” said Adam Linhardt, sheriff’s office spokesman. “The checkpoints are still in place and probably will be through May.”
People are turned away from the checkpoints and sent back to Miami-Dade if drivers can’t show documentation that they either live or work in the Keys.
Over the weekend, from Friday to Sunday, officers at the checkpoint turned around 1,523 cars, said county spokeswoman Kristen Livengood. That was a big jump from the previous weekend, when 1,045 cars were denied entry.
“For some reason, people think the Keys are open,” Linhardt said. “They’re not.”
Since the checkpoints started on March 27, a total of 10,034 cars were sent back to the mainland, Livengood said.
The apparent miscommunication also comes as the Keys are seeing an increase in boat traffic after Miami-Dade County reopened its marinas and boat ramps.
One of the closest marinas to the Keys, Blackpoint Marina in South Miami-Dade, saw hundreds of people use its ramps over the weekend. Traffic was so heavy, officials shut the marina down just hours after it opened on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Desperation to get a chance to use the ramps was so high that many people camped out starting at 10 Friday night to be among the first to be let in to the marina when it opened at 6 the next morning.
A lot of these boaters ended up in the Keys, said Bobby Dube, spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
“Especially in the Upper Keys, like the Key Largo area at Jewfish Creek and Blackwater Sound,” Dube said.
Despite the increase, however, Dube said police did not receive any reports of people breaking the law.
“Thankfully, no,” he said.
This story was originally published May 5, 2020 at 3:17 PM.
