As the US coronavirus death toll creeps toward 200,000, theme parks around the country remain open to visitors.
Health experts have warned that it's extremely difficult to successfully implement safety measures — such as social distancing — in theme park settings, and have cited them as risky environments.
Universal Studios — which is in Florida, the state with the third-highest number of confirmed cases in the country — has been open for three months now. But a viral TikTok by user Damarri Eddie has rekindled concerns over theme parks being open amid a global pandemic.
The video shows crowds of people walking extremely close to one another while exploring the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
There was apparently a two-hour wait for the train to transfer between parks.
The line for the Hogwarts Express King’s Cross Station is starting to creep into San Francisco. There’s currently a 120 minute wait to travel by train from Universal Studios Florida to Islands of Adventure.
And it looks like they were packed in like sardines once they were admitted.
Islands of Adventure feels much more crowded than Universal Studios Florida today.
There was no shortage of visitors in Springfield, The Simpsons–themed park, either.
Welcome to Springfield. The holiday weekend crowds have arrived in full force here at Universal Studios Florida.
Even the snack carts had ridiculously long lines.
Here are the current lines at Universal Studios Florida snack carts.
Various tweets showed how multiple parks reached their capacity this weekend.
And...Universal Studios Florida, Universal's Islands of Adventure and Volcano Bay all hit capacity today. The parks are operating at reduced capacity due to the pandemic, but still.
Capacity again today 💀 #universalstudios #drunkenduo
According to the Orlando Informer, this was the first time the dry parks had reached capacity since they reopened.
BREAKING: Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure have both reached modified capacity and are no longer selling tickets. For now, guests here with tickets are being allowed inside. This is the first time Universal’s dry parks have hit capacity since their reopening.
Remember, people: Just because you're ALLOWED to be somewhere does not mean it's a coronavirus-free zone.
Labor Day crowds still flocking to Universal Studios