Oceano Dunes, Pismo State Beach close to vehicles due to coronavirus pandemic
California State Parks has closed vehicle access at Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area, including Oso Flaco Lake and Pismo State Beach, according to a tweet from the County of San Luis Obispo.
“California State Parks announced it is temporarily closing vehicle access to 59 additional state parks and beaches to avoid dangerous visitation surges and help prevent the spread of coronavirus,” according to a March 27, press release from the California Department of Parks and Recreation.
“This brings the total number of state-operated parks and beaches closed to vehicle access to 98. A list of closures can be found online at their website: Flatten the Curve.”
California State parks advised, “Everyone has the responsibility to “Flatten the COVID-19 Curve at Parks.”
“Avoiding groups of people and maintaining at least 6 feet of distance from others is critical to slowing the COVID-19 pandemic.”
They ask the public to adhere to the following:
- Stay home if you are sick.
- Stay close to home when you get outdoors. This is not the time for a road trip to a destination park or beach.
- Venture out only with people in your immediate household.
- Walk around the neighborhood and enjoy neighborhood parks.
- Always maintain a physical distance of 6 feet or more when recreating in the outdoors. If you cannot maintain physical distancing, leave the park.
- Do not congregate in parks.
“To date, the department has implemented various safety measures such as temporarily closing all campgrounds, museums and visitor centers in the State Parks System; canceling all events and closing vehicular traffic to parks experiencing high visitation.”
“As of today, all non-campground outdoor areas of parks, including trails and beaches, remain open. Day-use restrooms also remain open, and visitors are advised to bring soap for hand washing and to use alcohol-based hand sanitizers when water is not available.”
A list of state beaches and campgrounds in SLO County
Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area
Pismo State Beach
Morro Bay State Park
Morro Strand State Beach
Cayucos State Beach
San Simeon
This story was originally published March 28, 2020 at 12:22 PM.