Videos that emerged online of crowds appearing to ignore physical distancing guidelines at Niagara Falls have raised concerns about visiting the popular tourist destination.
Niagara Falls resident Cole Morningstar sparked outrage online after posting videos of people on Clifton Hill Saturday evening.
"It's really bad down here," the 20-year-old told CTV News Toronto on Thursday. "A lot of people just seem to not even care."
He said only about 10 per cent of people appeared to wear a mask, despite physical distancing being a challenge.
"Don't get me wrong, I love tourist attractions down by the falls, but when they're when everyone decides to come it just becomes unsafe."
His videos of the crowds have been viewed by more than 165,000 times and have even prompted the mayor to announce some changes.
Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati said Thursday morning that 40,000 people in the region rely on tourism for a living so it’s important to find a balance between allowing people to visit and maintaining a safe environment.
He said that Saturday was the busiest night at the major tourist attractions since the beginning of the pandemic.
"Together we're trying to figure out the best way to go about this, where we can actually earn a living and do it in a safe way," Diodati said. "That's what an ultimate goal is."
Diodati announced Thursday he would immediately implement a plan to maintain proper health protocols for tourists.
"We want this to be safe to play," Diodati said, adding that the plan will be more about encouraging compliance with municipal laws over seeking convictions and issuing fines.
He said local employees, dressed in yellow shirts and hats, will approach groups of people not distancing and provide friendly reminders about safety measures.
Diodati also said he is certain that Niagara Falls will implement a mandatory masks bylaw at a council meeting scheduled for tonight.
"Some people refuse to follow protocols and we're going to encourage these people to follow the protocol," he said.
