Hilton Head extends COVID mask requirement for restaurants, stores. What to know
Hilton Head Island’s Town Council voted unanimously Tuesday afternoon to extend the town’s face mask requirement for commercial spaces.
The ordinance will now expire on March 21 — or when the town’s state of emergency ends.
Hilton Head’s mask rule extends to all commercial spaces, including grocery stores, restaurants, bars, gyms, stores, hotel lobbies and other businesses.
The rule allows patrons to take off the mask while actively eating or drinking. People who have a medical condition that bars them from being able to safely wear a face mask are exempt.
Jane Kelly, Assistant State Epidemiologist, told the Town Council that new variants of COVID-19 make the next several weeks and months the most crucial time to wear a mask in public.
Passing the extension of the requirement happened with little discussion from the council Tuesday. It was the fourth extension of the mask requirement, which originally went into effect on July 1 on Hilton Head.
The vote comes as Beaufort County sees record numbers of new cases after holiday travel, and vaccine roll out is moving slowly at area hospitals.
Meanwhile, tourism to the island continued steadily over the holidays, and area organizations have announced in-person festivals for the spring.
At least one group has formed to oppose any type of mask requirement on the island.
No Mask Required HHI launched a website and petition in the fall to advocate for the removal of all mask requirements. The group organized at least one in-person protest at Town Hall.
There were no public comments Tuesday opposing the mask requirement extension.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control and medical authorities such as the Mayo Clinic have found face masks help to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
