CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Counting down to the new year might come with a few safety precautions to help stop the spread of COVID-19, especially at bars where a lot of people will gather to ring in the new year.
The Point of Corpus Christi is located downtown, and they said while social distancing and masks are optional, they are using plastic cups to help stop the spread of germs and the virus.
“A lot of people were kind of cooped up last year and it’s been kind of a strange year, so I’m expecting it to be even bigger than in some of the past years,” Francisco Cancio, the owner said.
At the House of Rock a few blocks over, they’re celebrating by going back in time with an 80s theme for their New Year’s Eve celebration. But their 80s theme will have a modern day twist, as they too will have a few safety precautions they’re taking.
“The crowds have been pretty good. We’re still operating on a limited capacity. Not filling the place up 100 percent. But the crowds have been good and we think New Year’s Eve will be another fun event,” Casey Lain, the owner of the House of Rock said.
He said they will be continuing to take the same precautions they have always taken when it comes to being sanitary.
“In or out of COVID, following health code regulations. Making sure that you have the right temperature water in your sink and changing out your chemicals often,” Lain said.
The omicron variant is the dominant variant in the U.S. and the CDC said it could possibly spread faster than the original COVID-19 variant. They recommend social distancing from people who don’t live in the same household and said it’s safer to have outdoor gatherings. They recommend taking a COVID-19 test to find out if you’re positive or negative.
The Barnes family was visiting Corpus Christi on Monday and said they would be back home in San Antonio for New Year’s Eve. They said they are having a more quiet celebration after the announcement that the omicron variant is now in Texas.
“We want to be mindful that we’re around people who are older and we don’t want to inadvertently transfer something to them so our goal is to remain low-key, spend time together as a family,” Roderick Barnes said.
