UC San Diego virus expert pleads with surfers to stay out of the ocean to avoid coronavirus

Kim Prather — a UC San Diego atmospheric scientist who studies how viruses and bacteria are ejected from the ocean — pleaded with surfers on Monday to stay out of the water to minimize their chances of contracting the coronavirus.

Prather urged people who have been bicycling or walking along the coast to do the same.

“Surfers are saying that they’re safe if they stay 6 feet away from other people, but that’s only true if the air isn’t moving,” said Prather, who works at UCSD’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. “Most of the time, there’s wind or a breeze at the coast. Tiny drops of virus can float in the air and get blown around.”

Foot traffic on Saturday at the intersection of S. Coast Highway and Chesterfield, north end of Cardiff-by-the-Sea.

(Gary Robbins / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

She said trying to avoid an airborne virus was similar to trying to avoid smoke from a cigarette — particularly if you are downwind.

“If you don’t care about your own life, that’s one thing. But this can be a matter of life or death to other people. I’m really worried because the coronavirus is so contagious,” added Prather, who specializes in viruses and bacteria that arise in the surf zone.

Authorities have closed most San Diego County beaches and beach parking lots. Oceanside has a “soft” closure, which means that the beach is open to walkers and runners. The beach-side parking lots are closed. The same rules apply at Coronado.

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