Is your patience with business closures and physical distancing wearing thin? My answer is a great big yes! My business is closed and I want to reopen, but I noticed in the May 8 paper that in Georgia, where they have opened many businesses, there were an additional 62,440 extra travelers into the state. Normally this would be a great tourism story, but let’s just think about that influx.

It was observed by the University of Maryland’s Transportation Institute. Using cellphone location data, the institute measured that 62,440 number compared to last year’s traffic into Georgia during the same time period. This year, however, some of these travelers may have carried something that’s dangerous: COVID-19. Without testing, we’ll never know.

Our Maine media is focusing on the numbers here in Maine, but what’s happening in the states where many of our tourists and friends live? New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey all have much higher death percentages and their case counts remain high.

Maybe we will find out in a couple of weeks the outcome of Georgia roulette. Here’s hoping it doesn’t result in more illness and fatalities. Opening too soon isn’t a mistake that can be fixed. Here in Maine, we don’t need mistakes to be made, a high death toll isn’t really a great tourism promotion.

I’ll wait, not so patiently, to open my business. We, here in Maine, depend on tourism. Let’s face it, we’ve already made a giant sacrifice to save lives. Testing will help us know where, in our country and world, this virus is prevalent. That information will lead us to safer circumstances for opening our state. We should remember: Dead people can’t travel or spend money.

Steve Hoad

Windsor

(The writer operates a café in the Department of Transportation headquarters in Augusta.)