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COLUMBUS (AP) -- Ohio will begin cracking down on social distancing at bars after photos showed plenty of customers standing and drinking on crowded patios during the first weekend restaurants and taverns were allowed to reopen, Gov. Mike DeWine said Monday.
Police officers and health investigators will be making safety checks as part of beefed up enforcement teams, the governor said.
Bar owners could wind up in court or lose their liquor licenses if they don't take steps to control their customers, DeWine warned. Some places were "totally out of hand" with a lack of social distancing, he said.
"Have fun, but keep that distance," DeWine said.
Health departments, including those in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Columbus, investigated several complaints at crowded bars and restaurants over the weekend.
Friday was the first day that establishments were allowed to resume outdoor dining and drinking while inside service can resume Thursday.
Among the rules are that customers must be seated when eating or drinking and there must be spacing between tables either by a barrier or 6 feet of distance.
That includes not allowing people to stand around a bar or patio, DeWine said.
The Ohio Restaurant Association wrote in an email to members Saturday evening that there were concerns about reports of establishments not following the governor's guidelines. It also said it's likely "these are isolated incidents and not reflective of our industry's overall positive response to reopening safely."
Here are the latest coronavirus-related developments in Ohio:
VETERANS HOME
Increased monitoring at Ohio's two veterans homes has found 23 residents and three staff members at the Sandusky location have tested positive for the virus, DeWine said.
No one has tested positive at the veterans home in Georgetown.
The state decided to check all 500 residents at both locations after a handful of positive tests came back last week, the governor said.
BARBERSHOP PROBE
Health officials in Toledo have started an investigation after learning a person with a confirmed case of the coronavirus was at a barbershop on Friday, the first day Ohio's beauty salons and barbershops were allowed to reopen.