‘It’s still St. Patrick’s Day.’ Some gather at Fort Worth bars despite coronavirus fears
At a locally-owned Irish pub in Fort Worth, St. Patrick’s Day revelers were reduced from the usual crowd of 3,000 to about 50 due to coronavirus.
Poag Mahones co-owner Glenn Keely said St. Patrick’s Day is normally their biggest day of the year, but this year, it turned into one of their slowest.
Normally, 2,000 to 3,000 people would be gathered at the pub on Carroll Street on St. Patrick’s Day.
The pub canceled its outdoor party and were using a clicker to track people coming in and out of to make sure they didn’t go over their occupancy allowance of 118.5 people. But most of the time, there was no need — they could hand count their patrons instead.
On Tuesday, Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price said that within 24 hours, Fort Worth would mandate restaurants and bars close their dining rooms and move to delivery and takeout only.
“It’s heartbreaking,” General Manager Shelby Dodd said about the relatively small crowd and the pub’s imminent closure. “We’re really scared.”
‘It’s still St. Patrick’s Day’
Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that people cancel events with 10 or more people for the 15 days on Tuesday. President Donald Trump also urged people to gather in groups of 10 or less to limit the spread of the virus. The CDC also encouraged “social distancing” as an effort to reduce contact with other people.
But since crowds were still permitted in Fort Worth for at least another day, some decided to enjoy a night out while they still could.
“It’s one last night.” Karrina Palomino, 23, said while she sat at Poag Mahone’s wood bar.
Her friend, 21-year-old Megan Ogembo, agreed.
“Half of me believes it’s fake, half of me believes it’s social media hyping it up,” she said about COVID-19. “And it’s still St. Patrick’s Day.”
The two sat at the bar, where nearly all the stools were taken. People played pool, talked outside on the patio under strung-up green lights and ordered drinks served in bright green cups.
As of Tuesday night, six people in Tarrant County were confirmed to have coronavirus, one by community spread.
Jim Sluder sat at the end of the bar with a friend. He said he was not worried about getting sick because he’s young and healthy.
“If there were people in Fort Worth that had symptoms, then I would not have come out,” he said.
His friend leaned over to him and said there had, in fact, been cases reported in Fort Worth.
“What? Well, I’m going to go home,” he said, laughing, and took a drink.
On March 10, a priest at a Fort Worth church tested positive for coronavirus.
Danny Fisher, 47, and Denise Fisher, 48, also sat at the pub’s bar. They said their teenage kids were home since school was closed, and they were looking forward to a night out while they can still leave the house.
Denise Fisher said their son’s prom and their twins’ high school graduation were called off.
Danny Fisher said he isn’t personally worried about getting sick, but he is worried about spreading the virus to others, like his mother.
“I called my mom and I said, ‘I love you, but I’m not gonna come see you,’” he said. “I’m worried about seeing my mom. That scares me, and I hope it scares everybody.”
He said they are keeping their distance from others and washing their hands often.
Impact on small business
On Monday, Dallas County officials ordered bars, restaurants and other businesses to close to prevent further spread of the virus.
Price originally opted for a less severe tactic Monday night. Price announced that groups would be limited to 125 people, including in buildings, and mandated that building occupancy limits be cut in half.
In an interview Tuesday afternoon, before Price announced the city would close bars within 24 hours, Keely said Price was “probably one of the boldest mayors in the country to at least try to save small businesses instead of just shuttering them.”
“It helps me keep the lights on and helps me keep employees paid,” he said.
Keely said Poag Mahones will bounce back, but he was worried for his employees, many of whom live paycheck to paycheck. He thinks eventually, Fort Worth will have to close its businesses, too, and many workers will go bankrupt.
“So, what’s getting lost in all this is day-to-day workers that don’t have money saved because the economy has been hard on them for 20 years,” Keely said. “Then they’re out of money for two weeks at best. How do they eat, how do they keep their cars?”
Heather Anderson, a morning show host of The Ranch radio station, sat with friends at Poag Mahones on Tuesday night. She said she wanted to support local businesses and workers who will soon be without a paycheck.
“Supporting local business, local bartenders, local servers, means more to me than a virus,” she said on the back patio.
She said getting sick had not crossed her mind.
“Talking to the bartenders and knowing the struggles they have, how can I not support them?” she said.
Ryanne Moody, 33, also went to Poag Mahones Tuesday night, and said she resented government officials hurting small businesses.
“I don’t acknowledge that the government is telling us to stay home like children,” she said. “It’s Big Brother at its worse.”
As of Tuesday night, 6,362 people were confirmed to have the virus in the United States, according to data compiled by John Hopkins University. A 77-year-old man who lived at an Arlington retirement center died Sunday from the virus.
This story was originally published March 18, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
