Residents in Bahías de Banderas, Nayarit, the municipal home of the popular beach destination Sayulita, blocked access to the town over the weekend in order to prevent out-of-state tourists from visiting during the emergency period called in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The residents criticized the out-of-towners for ignoring the government’s recommendations to help mitigate the spread of Covid-19. Deputy Health Minister Hugo López-Gatell reminded the public on Friday that they should not be making plans to hit the road for the Easter vacation period.

Local media reports said that around 20 residents set up checkpoints at the entrances to the town. In a video shared on social media one can be heard telling the tourists attempting to enter that if they want to go on vacation they should pick somewhere else.

Later in the video an argument can be heard between residents and tourists, the latter complaining that there were no hotels in which to stay and the former reminding them that the announcement of the beach closures came many days prior to their arrival.

Nayarit Governor Antonio Echevarría posted a video to social media in which he expressed his anger over citizens traveling from Jalisco for vacation and urged Nayarit citizens not to provide services to them.

“We have made the decision to close all the [beach clubs], all the public pools. And I’m asking the people of Bahía de Banderas not to provide services to these people in your homes,” he said.

Echevarría said that an official in Jalisco had been in communication with him to let him know that many Jalisco residents were going to Nayarit for vacation.

“We are not going to allow them to come and infect our people,” he said. “Please stay in your homes in Guadalajara.”

The weekend’s events were not the only examples of communities closing themselves off to outsiders. Indigenous residents in Baja California Sur, Oaxaca, Chiapas and Chihuahua closed off access to their towns in response to the virus.

Source: Eje Central (sp)