Lack Of Coronavirus Social Distancing At Montco Stores: Official

NORRISTOWN, PA — Social distancing is not being practiced at numerous businesses in Montgomery County, residents and local leaders have noted, while some nonessential businesses have attempted to open quietly despite the coronavirus mitigation regulations in place. Officials say their behavior is prolonging the crisis.

County leaders said they received many complaints over the weekend of stores in the area that were either overcrowded or included groups of people in flagrant noncompliance of well-established social distancing guidelines.

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"I got a photo this weekend that literally made me want to throw up, looking at what was going on in that store," Montgomery County Commissioner Val Arkoosh said Monday.

While officials did not specify which businesses had failed to enforce basic social distancing guidelines, they did say that residents should simply drive or walk away when they see a store, park or other area that looks crowded.

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Meanwhile, plenty of businesses are embracing social distancing, Arkoosh said.

"Take your business to one of those places." he said. "Those places deserve your business. The places that are allowing a free for all inside don't deserve your business. You should take the personal responsility to go somewhere else."

Businesses that defy the rules could face enforcement and citations. "We're giving them one chance to do it better," Arkoosh noted.

Officials pointed to such behavior as the reason for the continued steady number of new positive cases of coronavirus in the county each day.

On Monday, 84 new cases and 14 new deaths were announced, bringing the county's total to 220 deaths and 3,683 cases.

Montgomery County has seen 2,612 cases over the past two weeks, and an average of 187 per day. In order to meet the state's standard to begin lifting restrictions and reopening, that number must come down to an average of 30 per day, or a total of 415 over a two-week period.

>>> Full coverage of coronavirus in Pennsylvania