Crowded beaches spark concerns over physical distancing

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. — Hundreds of people soaked in the sun during a beautiful weekend at the beach. 

With large crowds on hand in the sand, many concerns were raised with regards to proper physically distancing.

"There are a lot of people on the beach,” Montecito resident Harry Rabin said. “They don't look like they're distancing like they should be just because everybody has to walk by each other."

"It definitely looks pretty crowded and that's why I'm up here trying to not go down there,” Santa Barbara resident Grace Apostolopoulos said. “It doesn't look like there's a lot of room to distance yourself."

"I love the idea of people being responsible and being able to take care of themselves,” Montecito resident Michael Kraios said. 

“I see a lot of great things out here, I see a lot of good people exercising the utmost care. But with everything right now, it's hard, you gotta self-police yourself."

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department and other county officials patrolled the beaches to warn those not following the rules.

"We're trying to make our presence known,” Santa Barbara County Sheriff Department senior deputy Eric Delgadillo said. “Just to educate people who might not be abiding by the six feet social distancing requirement."

While many people arrived at the beach for a brief walk, many lounged in the sand for an extended period of time with umbrellas and towels.

"Being out here just because you want to come out here for a little bit

versus rebelling and setting up camp while being here all day, that's a fine line,” Kraios said.

“Thus far, from what we've seen there's been compliance,” Delgadillo said. “There's been times though where we'd walk around just to make sure people saw us, then realized that they have to separate."

Looking towards the immediate future, some locals believe that the county beaches should remain open with certain restrictions.

"Yes, as long as people are able to keep distancing,” Rabin said. “I think that people shouldn't be laying down on the beach in my opinion right now."

However, others think that it may be safer to temporarily shutdown beaches.

"If it were put to a vote, I would probably vote to close the beach,” Apostolopoulos said. “This is the new place where people are gathering and I think it's fair to put some restrictions around it."

Although some citations were handed out by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department this weekend, the majority of these fines were related to illegal beach parking.