Gov. DeSantis briefing on coronavirus (March 24) Tallahassee Democrat



Travelers arriving in Florida's major airports began this week being greeted by National Guardsmen and being ordered to quarantine themselves if they have spent time in New York, where the COVID-19 pandemic escalated to 30,000 confirmed cases across the state Wednesday.

There's no similar provision for private plane operators flying in to general aviation airports, such as the four on the Treasure Coast.

But that could happen at some point, county officials said.

For instance, a New Yorker with a Cessna could fly into Witham Field in Martin County  or Sebastian Municipal Airport and avoid the self-quarantine requirement.

More: What does the coronavirus' acronym COVID-19 stand for?

"The (Florida) Governor’s Executive Order is being phased in first at five major hub airports, then other commercial airports, then in some form at general aviation airports such as Treasure Coast International Airport," said Erick Gill, spokesman for St. Lucie County.

The order does not include car or rail passengers.

Elite Airways, which provides commercial passenger service to Vero Beach, said its travelers will have to agree to the 14-day quarantine upon arrival in Indian River County.

Gov. Ron DeSantis' order is first targeting the thousands of people daily that could be flying into Orlando, Miami or the other major hubs throughout the state. 

"We had 197 flights into Florida Monday from New York," DeSantis said at a press conference Tuesday. "Those flights became the hottest ticket after the shelter-in-place order went into place in New York."

What's happening at those airports is the National Guard meets with incoming travelers who departed from the tri-state area — New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.  

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Once the travelers are informed of the governor's mandate, the guardsmen take their contact information, and determine where they will be self-quarantined. The order says it's a second-degree misdemeanor if they violate the two-week quarantine.  

"We'll probably expand that to the smaller airports, but the major airports that get the most traffic are covered," DeSantis said at Tuesday's press conference. 

By Wednesday, New York’s death toll from the coronavirus surpassed 280, by far the most of any state. Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued a shelter-at-home order for New York March 20.

"You started having people flood out of New York City, including taking hundreds of flights to the state of Florida," DeSantis said. "New York is the epicenter of the COVID-19 virus in the entire world right now."



DeSantis' order, for now, hasn't been applied to private aircraft at general aviation airports, such as the four on the Treasure Coast.

"We're waiting to see if they want us to assist," said Sam Carver, manager at Witham Field.

The managers of the local general aviation airports said they aren't provided with point-of-origin details of the planes that land.

There was no information about how many flights may have arrived from New York's tri-state area in the last several days. 

One airline which has regular flights from Newark, New Jersey, to Vero Beach won't be operating those trips for at least a week.

 Elite Airways has canceled this weekend’s round-trip routes so the airline can comply with DeSantis’s executive order, a spokeswoman said.

When the flights resume, Newark to Vero Beach passengers will be screened upon arrival and requested to self-quarantine for 14 days, according to a statement from the company.


If Florida can't suppress the spread of COVID-19, there might not be enough ventilators for all the patients in the Sunshine State. Florida Today

Stancil is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Contact him at 321-987-7179 or Twitter: @TCPalmLStancil

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