June 16, 2020 - 12:12 PM
JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. - Grand Teton National Park will open three visitor centres for the first time this year, about a month after the park reopened to the public following closures caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center in Moose, the Colter Bay Visitor Center on Jackson Lake, and the ranger station and welcome centre at Jenny Lake were opening Tuesday, park officials announced Monday.
These visitor centres are the first large visitor centres to open in Teton County, Jackson Hole News & Guide reported. They will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week.
Park spokeswoman Denise Germann has urged travellers to have patience when visiting as operations have changed.
"We are using stanchions within the visitor centres,” Germann said. “There may be a line of people waiting to talk to someone. We’re not limiting the people, we’re just organizing and structuring the people in a way that’s both safe for visitors and employees.”
The visitor centres now have plastic glass barriers at help desks, exhibits that are stanchioned off, and park employees wearing face coverings when social distancing is not an option.
Grand Teton National Park has not had a positive COVID-19 case among its staff that Germann was aware of. But Germann also said they have not done any testing to date, adding that "we’re still looking at the option of testing many of our front-line employees.”
Visitor and information centres in Yellowstone National Park and located within Teton County include Grant Village, West Thumb, Fishing Bridge, Madison and Old Faithful.
Yellowstone public affairs employees authorized to speak to the press were not immediately available. But an attendant answering the phone at the Albright Visitor Center in Mammoth said that all of the park’s visitor centres remain closed.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death. The vast majority of people recover.
News from © The Associated Press, 2020