The Florida panhandle is a spring break destination for thousands of south Louisiana residents. And this year, things are rapidly changing along the Emerald Coast, same as everywhere.

According to the Destin Log, the community of Seaside, Florida is temporarily shutting down their entire commercial district until April 30 after the Walton County Board of Commissioners declared a local state of emergency due to the coronavirus pandemic. Beach access along County Road 30A  in Seaside was closed last night at 5:00 pm (Monday, March 16th), and all of its spring event programming has been suspended.

Businesses have the option of waiting until noon Saturday to close. After that  the community food and beverage merchants can stay open, but “for to-go service only, unless otherwise directed by the state or federal government,” according to the SCDC statement.

And the NW Florida Daily News is reporting that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has closed bars and nightclubs for 30 days, and is limiting access to restaurants across the state.  He, however, did not issue an order to close the beaches. See his statement below.

Here is a current list of what is open, and what is closed in the Destin/30A area, as of March 17. We all want to be safe, but this is a bummer for folks who made plans long ago to head to sunny Florida for Easter or spring break.

 

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