As one of the natural wonders of Trinidad and Tobago, Maracas Beach is a place people often go to in order to forget their worries.
As the owner of one of the Richard’s Bake and Shark franchises, Abigail George walks its sands every day. But her worries are starting to mount and COVID-19 is responsible.
Last Sunday, the beach was full of people, inevitably meaning business was good. But that changed this week.
“Sales are terrible for me. I think customers are scared,” she said Thursday.
She is also scared.
Customers, including foreigners, come within two feet of her to place their orders. While she uses sanitizer and makes a genuine attempt, it’s difficult to practice social distancing on the job, she lamented. Up until this juncture, however, the mother of one hasn’t been tempted to close her business temporarily. But she now has little choice but to consider it.
“Well, it depends on what the news and the Government is saying we might have to. If this continues we will have to. It won’t be about if we want to," she said.
A stall over from Abigail is Aunty Tia’s Shark and Bake. For owner Sandra Gibbs, it makes little sense denying she might have to close up shop soon. She said she will base that decision on next Sunday’s turnout.
“Of course, I’m starting to worry, like everybody else, like everybody else who has small businesses,” she said.
While she hopes to avoid closing, she conceded it may be best not only for her but for the country at large.
Full of praise for the Government’s handling of the pandemic, she urged citizens to listen to Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley.
With their beach towel’s spread across the sand, two young women, Hayleigh Lopez and Adanna Julien, struck poses for their selfies. They set up away from the other 30 or so people on the beach. They also maintained, inconsistently albeit, a distance between one another. Hayleigh is Trinidadian while friend Adanna is a Canadian national here since Carnival, who is returning home next Sunday.
“I’m just trying to enjoy the rest of my vacation as best as I can. I’m at the beach because I love the beach. I am enjoying my time left because when I do go back to Canada I will have to self-quarantine for 14 days,” Julien said.
Lopez has also been in self-isolation. Apart from this trip to the beach, she has not been outside, besides going to work, for the last two weeks or so.
“It’s a desperate attempt for a change of scenery. It depresses to be inside my house for so long,” Lopez said.
Despite the Government’s call for citizens to stay away from public spaces, large crowds of people are still heading to the popular north coast beaches, according to Las Cuevas lifeguards. Patrol captain Carlyle Ryan said after 2 pm on weekdays and on weekends the beaches are full.
“We would like people to listen, or follow. The world knows, because as lifeguards we make bodily contact with victims in rescue,” he said.
Expressing concern, Ryan said he acknowledges people are bored and frustrated, by the measures implemented to deal with COVID-19. However, he urged citizens to use common sense and refrain from coming to the beach, especially in large numbers.
“If we make bodily contact with someone who has the virus, what is our position? Right? We taking it home to our family. As we speak we don’t have any hand sanitizer,” Ryan said.
Asked if he believed the beach should be closed, he said, “Yes, it should be, because when you look at outside, at the news, and you see the magnitude of this pandemic, it speaks it for itself.”
But the beachgoers who were there do not want the beach closed.
Maxi taxi driver Jairam Balkaran has stopped working, parking up his 25-seater, in light of the pandemic. On Tuesday, Wednesday and yesterday, he made the trip to the beach.
“I feel more secure on the beach than anywhere else because it’s not many people here and the sun is hot, that is important, “ Balkaran said.
At that time, however, there were approximately 20 people or so on the beach. Seemingly keeping with the Government’s recommendations, there were no individual groups present larger than nine people.
