TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Scenes of crowded entertainment districts and bars on the first weekend many university students returned to campus are raising new questions about safety during the coronavirus pandemic and whether college football can be played this year.
In Tuscaloosa, where throngs have gathered in an area near campus called The Strip, University of Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne tweeted a photo that showed dozens of people, many not wearing face masks or staying away from others, waiting to get in a popular bar.
“Who wants college sports this fall?? Obviously not these people!! We’ve got to do better than this for each other and our campus community. Please wear your masks!” Byrne said in a tweet Sunday.
Mayor Walt Maddox wrote that police and firefighters now have to come in early and are “actively enforcing” pandemic regulations. “It’s a damn shame that our officers who are stretched thin across the City and who are working to exhaustion can’t have a few hours of down time,” Maddox said on Twitter.
Tuscaloosa police officers issued 12 citations for mask violations and arrested four people, but the problem wasn’t just at the University of Alabama: Photos on social media also showed large crowds and relatively few masks around Auburn University over the weekend.