Bay County Extends Closure of Public Beaches
Panama City, Florida – The Bay County Board of County Commissioners, after consultation with Department of Health officials, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, the Tourist Development Council, and others, extended for another seven days the closure of public beaches in the unincorporated area of Bay County as a safety precaution to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 (see images below).
This emergency order was signed by Bay County Commission Chairman Philip “Griff” Griffitts and will be ratified by the board at its next meeting, which is slated for April 7th, 2020. Griffitts, under the order, has the authority to continue the closure as long as it is deemed necessary.
“We made the right decision to keep our community as safe as we can, and we will hold firm with that decision until we, based on the guidance of health professionals, feel comfortable that we can open the beaches back up,” Griffitts said.
The order provides the following:
- All beaches, beach accesses, and parking for beach accesses in Bay County, Florida are temporarily closed to the public.
- The M.B. Miller Pier is temporarily closed to everyone except for the use of the pier for fishing.
- It is unlawful for members of the public to access the beaches in Bay County.
