How to celebrate Memorial Day 2020 during Covid?

The US will celebrate Memorial Day this weekend with many citizens divided over whether to re-open the country or not. Scientists are concerned that the mingling that usual takes place during Memorial Day weekend could see a spike in cases but they have given advice on how to celebrate the holidays in a safe way.

"I think some of the scenes I've seen only on television of bars and very busy restaurants make me anxious. I get to be witness to people being extremely sick from this virus, so it's serious," Dr. Colleen Kraft, a top infectious disease doctor, said.

"I'm an extrovert. I think it's really important, but everybody is weathering this storm differently," she said. Some families are creating "quaranteams," or a limited group of healthy people who see each other in person while practicing social distancing.

Social distancing during Memorial Day weekend

“It may feel funny or awkward at first, like a physical-distance barbecue,” Joseph Allen, an assistant professor of exposure assessment science in the Department of Environmental Health at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said. “But there’s nothing like seeing friends face to face and hopefully share a couple laughs in this really stressful time.”

Inside Editions have published a video showing people the Dos and Don'ts of Memorial Day weekend.

They advise having smaller parties, the wearing of masks and social distancing between families. You should also, maybe, use a big table to separate families. Avoid community dishes and you can do so by serving individual packets of chips, sodas and ice creams. Swimming should also be avoided along with the playing of basketball and playing catch as you could be transmitting the virus. You can play golf or go for a hike though.

Many beaches are closed and if they are open have strict guidelines. Gatherings of more than 10 people are not allowed and masks must be worn at some of them.