Hundreds of Florida residents risked coronavirus exposure in order to be able to file paper applications for unemployment after a state website used as a portal for benefits crashed, local media reports.
Aerial footage outside a library in Hialeah, which the city used as one of three locations to pick up and file paper applications, showed hundreds of people lined up for help, a sign of the crippling effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
While some in line wore masks and stood as far away from others as possible in an effort to practice social distancing, others waited with no protection while they stood close to others.
The line appeared to go on for multiple blocks, even with individuals standing close together.
Gov. Ron DeSantis said earlier this week that the state would be adding staff to its unemployment team in response to the crippling jobless numbers.
DeSantis also claimed the unemployment website was now up to speed, but users told local NBC affiliate WESH2 that the site was still not working as it should.
Over half a million people in the state have filed for unemployment since March 15, the affiliate reports.
DeSantis has faced criticism for his handling of the state’s response to the virus, including resisting calls to issue a statewide stay-at-home order and outright refusing for weeks to close the state’s beaches.