Miami Beach has declared a state of emergency in its entertainment district due to an influx of spring breakers who have inundated the city. A curfew will be in effect at 8 p.m. for 72 hours, starting Saturday, Miami Beach Interim City Manager Raul Aguila announced Saturday.
All restaurants, bars and businesses are required to be closed by 8 p.m.
"As we hit the peak – at the peak of spring break, we are quite simply overwhelmed in the entertainment district," Aguila said at a press conference Saturday. "Folks, this is not an easy decision to make, we are doing that to protect the public health and safety."
The decision, Aguila said, is necessary to protect residents and spring breakers alike.
"The problem is there's a few things happening simultaneously, there's a confluence of challenging circumstances," Mayor Dan Gelber told USA TODAY. "We've got too many people and too many looking to act out while there's a pandemic going on. So we've got all this happening simultaneously, so it's become a tinder."
