Cape May County Freeholder Director Gerald Thornton wants visitors from outside of the county to stay away for at least two weeks.

People from outside of Cape May County have been traveling to their Shore homes, Thornton told NJ Advance Media Tuesday. Some have come from areas where patients have been diagnosed with coronavirus.

“I have been in this business for a lot of years,” Thornton said. “I have been through hurricanes, snowstorms, and the H1N1 flu virus, but this is the worst situation I have ever been involved with.”

The Freeholder Director said the additional people in the county had impacted the number of supplies at supermarkets and the number of people calling to have the water turned on in their second homes.

If the visitors were to bring coronavirus to Cape May County, Thronton said he doesn’t want to place a strain on the medical system. The county only has one hospital, Cape Regional Medical Center. With one facility, Thornton said he is concerned for the senior citizen community who he says makes up 25% of the county’s population.

“Suddenly we are seeing these large numbers coming here that we plan for an our summer season,” Thronton stated. "At this point in time, our county health department is really concerned about what’s happening.”

Cape May is one of the six remaining counties in the state that has not reported a case of coronavirus. Thornton said that there are 11 people in the county who are being tested for the virus, but he has not received any news that the test have come back positive.

“We love our second homeowners,” the freeholder said. “Forty-eight percent of our county is made up of second homes, and they’re very important to us. We know their kids are out of school, but this is not the time to decide to have a vacation and go to the Shore. What they should do is stay home as much as possible, work for home, and protect their families and their kids."

“This is not a vacation,” he added. "This is a very serious national crisis.”

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