For years as a tradition to ring in the new year, people have had parties all over the world to watch the ball drop and celebrate the year changing. However, COVID-19 restrictions and CDC social distancing guidelines prevented any New Year’s parties to transition into 2021…or so some would think.
Although citizens of the United States have been told not to participate in large gatherings, some people just could not listen and hosted New Year’s parties to ring in 2021. New Year’s parties happened all over the U.S. despite COVID-19 cases still rising.
For example, the Los Angeles Sheriff said in a Facebook post that 90 people were arrested and over 900 people were warned for breaking California’s coronavirus rules. In Houston on New Year’s Day, the map feature on Snapchat showed a large indoor venue full of maskless patrons.
Social media users across Miami shared videos of crowds gathering around pools without masks after the New Year’s holiday. One high school in Boston had remote instruction the week of Jan. 5 because of some students attending a New Year’s Eve party. One of those students tested positive for COVID-19.
Because of all of these New Year’s Eve parties, Florida broke its own record of COVID-19 cases again on Jan. 2, reaching 31,518 cases.
Not only were people at risk of catching and spreading the virus at New Year’s parties, but also while air traveling to and from those parties. The TSA announced that 1,327,289 people were screened for travel on Jan. 3, marking it as the busiest air travel day in the U.S. since the pandemic began.
Precautions have even been taken at Winthrop University. Interim President George Hynd sent out an email on Dec. 14, 2020, which included adjustments to the Spring 2021 calendar because of COVID-19 and the holidays. Hynd made the adjustment to have a remote start on Jan. 11, 2021 to “help mitigate virus spread as the holiday season winds down.”
While Hynd did not specifically mention New Year’s Eve, the holiday season started for WU students when they did not return to campus after Thanksgiving.
It is no shocker that COVID-19 cases and deaths will rise because of those who were irresponsible enough to take part in a large New Year’s Eve party. Those who rung in the New Year by themselves or just with the family that they live with do not have to worry about such tragedies.
COVID-19 is legitimately life-threatening and has cost far too many lives in our country and around the world. If more lives are lost as a result of New Year’s parties, will the partiers say it was worth it just to have celebrated the fact that the unbelievable year of 2020 is over?
Photo by Gwen Manten
