PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — It's been months since you could head to a bar or restaurant in a beach town in Delaware and sit at the bar and enjoy a drink. As of Labor Day weekend, you can do that again — but it's not going to be one big free-for-all like it was before the pandemic.
"(Patrons) must have a reservation, they must order food," said Health Systems Protection chief Jamie Mack. "This isn't a situation where we're just going to sit and have a few drinks."
Seats at the bar will also be spread out.
"We do realize that maybe the initial shutdown in that area had a heavy impact on some smaller establishments," added Mack, "that rely on patrons sitting at the bar for dinner as part of their table service. So this allows them to get back to some of that."
Gov. John Carney expects a lot of people will be in party mode during the holiday weekend. But even if you're just at a family gathering, Carney wants everyone to be careful.
"These are just the kind of activities that unknowingly take place and the virus is passed one person to the other," he said. "We let our guards down a little bit, probably don't wear face coverings or masks in family settings like that."
Carney calls the holiday weekend "a big test," adding he doesn't want to see coronavirus cases spike after Labor Day.
