Two weeks after ordering boat landings in the state closed to public use, S.C. Governor McMaster reopens boat ramps and landings, saying it was time to get people back recreating.
“It’s a small step, but it is a step,” McMaster said at his Thursday afternoon press conference.
The change means dozens of local boat landings throughout the Beaufort area will be reopened for use beginning Friday at noon, but landings can remain closed if local authorities believe there is still a risk.
The order, however, does not cover fishing piers and access to beaches.
Also, boats will be limited to only two people on board, with the exception of family members from the same household, and all vessels must remain underway; beaching on a sandbar or riverbank is prohibited, and stopping is allowed only for anchored fishing or other special circumstances.
McMaster’s executive order closing the landings came on March 30th following a weekend full of boaters throughout the state, and in Beaufort, ignoring the call for social distancing.
