If this past weekend in Sabine Parish taught anything, it’s that many people are selfishly not taking the COVID-19 pandemic seriously.
Those of us that live here generally welcome out-of-towners with open arms, but large number of boats heading toward the lake and large numbers of motorcycles were first noticed near the end of the work week and much like the pandemic, exploded exponentially over the weekend. Although the state parks along the lake were closed, numerous private facilities remained open.
On March 28, District Attorney Don Burkett posted to his office’s social media that he spent four hours driving around Toledo Bend and was greatly concerned with the number of extra people on the lake not taking the threat seriously and possibly spreading the contamination.
On Monday, March 30, Police Jury President Mike McCormic issued an order to end all vacation rentals and alerting those staying temporarily that they must leave by Thursday. An exemption was put into the ordinance for people who own camps and homes or those who have a long-term rental agreement of more than 30 days. The order is in effect until April 30.
The order itself is serious in its verbage in noting that Sabine Parish has limited health care capacity and is unable to care for a large number of COVID-19 cases. It is of note that the parish also contains a large number of retirees and senior citizens, who are identified as the most susceptible to the virus.
Violators face revocation of their retail licenses, fines of $500 or six months in jail.
“Everyone is committed to the safety of our parish,” Burkett wrote. “Working together and with God’s grace we will get through this.”