I have received reports from people that own houses here and from other states who have stated they are being treated poorly and aggressively when encountering others. Those that have called me have been here for weeks and are well past any quarantine issues. If there is a concern from a citizen, it is the police department's job to investigate and deal with those that are not in compliance. Please call and report any concerns here rather than confronting people. Let us not devolve into a modern-day episode of "Lord of the Flies."
Local population of the Island is around 1,000, and when we go in early spring (not this year I expect) and late fall (hopefully) we bond with no problem. We breakfast at "Bethany's Airport Diner" (now forced to close), and generally don't see many other mainlanders, which is one reason to go far off-season. We haven't spent much time there 'in season' and have not much interest in doing so. But like insular folks (literally and figuratively) everywhere, when 'the other' brings danger, hackles get raised. So far no reported Covid-19 infections on Island. The Island, in the form of the police department, is being pro-active (to be PC) in informing arrivals of required behavior as they leave the ferry. You betcha. What the reporting hasn't said, that I've seen, is how many arrivals are mainlanders or Islanders returning. The near off-season (the in-the-know call it 'shoulder season'; only recently found that out) starts late April. We'll see.
To say that it is refreshing to read a literary reference from a 'small town' police chief isn't near enough. Not to mention: he's right.
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