NOW?
>> I CAN HEAR YOU NOW.
>> OKAY.
GREAT.
FLORIDA AS A STATE JUST
SURPASSED OVER THE WEEKEND
15,000 NEW CASES.
THAT’S MORE THAN NEW YORK EVER
DID.
WHEN NEW YORK WAS AT THE HEIGHT
OF THE CRISIS THE STATE ENTIRELY
SHUT DOWN FROM NEW YORK CITY ALL
THE WAY UP NORTH TO UPSTATE TO
BUFFALO.
IT WAS SHUT DOWN, THE ENTIRE
STATE WITH FREE MOVEMENT IN THIS
STATE.
FLORIDA HAS MORE CASES THAN NEW
YORK DID DURING ITS HEIGHT.
YOU DON’T HAVE ENOUGH TESTING IN
FLORIDA TO BE ABLE TO TELL WHERE
THE VIRUS IS.
YOU CERTAINLY CAN’T DO CONTACT
TRACING.
I’M A LITTLE CONFUSED HOW YOU’RE
DEFENDING THE REOPENING OF A
THEME PARK IN THE MIDDLE OF A
PANDEMIC WHEN THE STATE HAS NO
HANDLE ON THE SPREAD OF THIS
VIRUS, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING
THAT IN HONG KONG THERE ARE 52
NEW CASES AND DISNEY HAS SHUT
DOWN THERE.
>> I CAN TELL YOU TWO THINGS
THAT WE PRIORMARILY LOOK AT.
THE POSITIVITY AND THE HOSPITAL
CAPACITY.
SO WHAT WE ARE NOT SEEING IS
THAT PEOPLE ARE VERY KRITDCRITIC
ILL, EVEN THOSE THAT ARE TESTING
POSITIVE.
THEY TEND TO HAVE MINOR SYMPTOMS
AND PRIMARILY THEY’RE
ASYMPTOMATIC SO THAT IS A
SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE I THINK
THAN WHAT YOU SAW BACK IN NEW
YORK AT THE HEIGHT OF THE SURGE
DURING THAT PERIOD OF TIME.
THE HOSPITAL SYSTEM HAD BEEN
OVERRUN.
THERE WERE MANY, MANY MORE --
>> THERE ARE A NUMBER OF
HOSPITALS IN FLORIDA TALKING
ABOUT NOT HAVING ICU CAPACITY,
MR. MAYOR, HOSPITALS IN FLORIDA
WORRIED OF RUNNING OUT OF BEDS.
DEATH IS A LAGGING INDICATOR AS
WE HAVE SEEN.
DEATHS ARE UPTICKING RIGHT NOW.
AND YOU’RE DEFENDING THE OPENING
OF A THEME PARK, ALSO JUST TO BE
CLEAR, YOU MIGHT NOT HAVE A TON
OF CASES IN ORANGE COUNTY BUT
IT’S NOT ONLY ORANGE COUNTY
RESIDENTS THAT ARE GOING TO WALT
DISNEY WORLD.
IT IS PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE
STATE AND FRANKLY ALL OVER THE
ADJOINING STATES WHO ARE ABLE TO
DRIVE IN FOR THE MOST PART.
IT IS NOT CON FUNEDFINED TO JUST
COUNTY.
>> I’M SAYING I’M NOT IN THE
BUSINESS TO DEFEND A CORPORATE
DECISION BY DISNEY.
OUR GOVERNMENT PUT OUT A
STATEWIDE EXECUTIVE ORDER THAT
GAVE GUIDANCE TO THE REOPENING.
DISNEY FOLLOWED THAT PARTICULAR
PLAN AND WE HAD THE PRIVILEGE TO
REVIEW IT AND SO THAT’S WHERE WE
ARE HERE IN THE STATE OF
FLORIDA.
GOVERNOR DESANTIS CONTINUED TO
SAY THAT HE SUPPORTS THE
REOPENING SO GIVEN THAT AT THE
LOCAL LEVEL WHILE WE HAVE TO
DO -- WHAT WE HAVE TO DO IS IF
THE BUSINESSES REOPEN THEY DO SO
IN THE SAFEST MANNER POSSIBLE
AND WHAT I’M SAYING TO YOU IS
THAT WE BELIEVE THAT THE
MEASURES THAT DISNEY PUT IN
PLACE SHOULD GIVE US A KIND OF
OUTCOMES.
AT THE SAME TIME THAT THE GUESTS
ARE COMING INTO THE PARK THEY’RE
HOSTING THE NBA.
I WOULD DARE SAY THAT THAT
ENVIRONMENT IS PRETTY SECURE
BECAUSE THE PLAYERS ARE LIVING
WITHIN AN ISOLATED AREA THERE.
IN ADDITION, THEY’RE BEING
TESTED ON A VERY REGULAR BASIS
AND PEOPLE AREN’T GOING TO BE
ALLOWED TO GO IN TO THAT
PARTICULAR SPACE AND SO WITH THE
NBA AND MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
REENGAGING THERE THE ENVIRONMENT
IS LIKELY SAFER THERE THAN IT IS
IN THE GENERAL PUBLIC AT LARGE
BECAUSE THEY’RE NOT GOING TO --
>> THERE HAVE BEEN NBA PLAYERS
WHO HAVE TESTED POSITIVE.
YES, IT IS AN EXPERIMENT AND YOU
SAID YOU DIDN’T WANT TO SOUND
LIKE YOU WERE -- WITH ALL DUE
RESPECT A CORPORATE FLACK FOR
DISNEY AND SOUNDED LIKE YOU WERE
DEFENDING A DISNEY DECISION MORE
THAN YOU WERE SOUNDING LIKE THE
MAYOR OF ORANGE COUNTY, WITH ALL
DUE RESPECT, SIR.
>> THAT’S AN OPINION THAT YOU
MIGHT HAVE BUT WHAT I’M SAYING
HERE IS I SPENT NEARLY FOUR
DECADES IN CRISIS MANAGEMENT AND
I ALWAYS WILL MAKE MY DECISIONS
BY PUTTING THE PEOPLE OVER
PROFITS AT ANY GIVEN TIME SO
SAFETY IS OF THE UTMOST CONCERN
TO ME AND TO THE HEALTH OFFICERS
WHO ARE HERE AND I THINK THAT
THAT IS THE CASE FOR DISNEY.
YOU HAVE CORPORATE
RESPONSIBILITY AT PLAY HERE AND
TRYING TO MAKE THE BEST
DECISIONS FOR OUR POPULOUS.
IT IS NOT SUSTAINABLE FOR THE
LONG TERM TO SHUT DOWN OUR FULL
COMMERCE SO WE HAVE TO LEARN HOW
TO LIVE WITH THE VIRUS.
NONE OF US AT THIS POINT KNOW
REALLY WHAT THE PANDEMIC IS
GOING TO DO.
WE HAVE THE BODY OF KNOWLEDGE OF
OUR PAST EXPERIENCES THAT WE CAN
LEAN ON GOING FORWARD BUT WE
HAVEN’T BEEN IN THIS PLACE
BEFORE.
SO I THINK, AGAIN, WHAT WE’RE
TRYING TO DO HERE IS TAKE A LOOK
AT THE EXISTING DATA WITHIN OUR
COUNTY, WITHIN ORANGE COUNTY
HERE, TO MAKE THE BEST DECISIONS
GOING FORWARD SO AS I STARTED
OUT I SAID THAT WE WERE EXCITED
FOR THE REOPENING BUT IT IS ALSO
CONCERNING TO ME AT THE SAME
TIME AND WE WILL HAVE TO SEE.
IF THIS IS -- IF WE HAVE THE
OUTCOME WE WANT TO SEE THEN
WE’LL MAKE APPROPRIATE DECISIONS
BUT WHAT I SAY TO OUR PUBLIC
HERE IS THAT IF AT ANY POINT
WHEN WE EVALUATE THE DATA ON A
DAY-TO-DAY BASIS IF WE NEED TO
MAKE AJUSTMENTS I WILL NOT
HESITATE TO MAKE THAT DECISION
WITHIN THE AUTHORITY THAT I HAVE
AS A LOCAL COUNTY MAYOR.
>> MAYOR JERRY DEMINGS, THANK
YOU VERY MUCH.
FLORIDA HAD MORE CASES ON SUNDAY
THAN ANY OTHER STATE AT ANY
OTHER TIME DURING THE PANDEMIC.
AND NOT EVERYONE FROM FLORIDA --
PEOPLE GO TO DISNEY FROM ALL