As we reported at the time, the lockdown swiftly transformed Berkeley into an empty city, devoid of traffic and bustle.
With the risk of outdoor transmission of COVID-19 then unknown, lone joggers made their way down deserted thoroughfares, signs in the windows of small businesses warned of overcrowding and whole areas were cordoned off from the public, including playgrounds. People who ventured out for much-needed walks wore protective masks and were cautious about getting too close to fellow cabin-fever sufferers; others stood in line to buy groceries, adhering to makeshift social distancing markers.
Today, Berkeleyside is republishing photos and video showing the eery atmosphere that took grip in the city during the early weeks of the pandemic.
This short film was created by Pedal Born Pictures for Berkeleyside using a drone camera.AC Transit buses are among the few vehicles that can be seen on Shattuck during the day. Photo: Pete RososGoorin Bros. Hat shop with its closure announcement posted on the door March 17. Photo: Pete RososTraffic was sparse in the streets of Berkeley on March 17. Photo: Pete RososA medical mask placed over the nose of the smilidon statue in front of McComb Hall on UC Berkeley. Photo: Pete RososInside the very closed Rouge Mark Studios on Ashby Avenue in Berkeley on March 17. Photo: Pete RososThe line outside Berkeley Bowl East shortly before 9 a.m. on March 17, 2020, before masks became ubiquitous. Photo: Pete RososAll branches of the Berkeley Public Library closed during lockdown. Photo: Pete RososNo one in sight at the Downtown Berkeley BART entrance. Photo: Pete RososJeff of Smoke Berkeley sits and waits for takeout customers in Spats. Photo: Pete RososMaryam Bloori and Parsa Elahi of Emilia Flowers trying to survive through the shelter-in-place order. Photo: Pete RososAn empty Peet’s Coffee on Vine Street in North Berkeley. Photo: Pete RososAnna and Edward of Seoul Hotdog waiting for takeout customers. Photo: Pete RososAn almost deserted Hearst food court in North Berkeley. Photo: Pete RososSomeone marked the sidewalk outside Berkeley Bowl East with dots and hearts to show the distance needed for social distancing. Photo, taken on March 25, 2020: Pete RososA Safeway pharmacist wears a respirator while at work on March 25, 2020. Photo: Pete RososAt Magnani’s in North Berkeley, there was a five-person limit in the store. Photo, taken on March 25., 2020: Pete RososCaution tape around the play structures at Berkeley’s Grove Park on March 25, 2020. Photo: Pete RososA Whole Foods employee hands over a disinfected basket to a shopper entering the Telegraph Avenue store on March 25, 2020. Photo: Pete RososGrove Park: empty tennis courts in the foreground and empty basketball courts in the background. Photo, taken on March 25, 2020: Pete RososTilden Little Farm during shelter-in-place order, on March 23, 2020. Photo: Nancy RubinA water fountain at Tilden Little Farm during shelter-in-place order, on March 23, 2020. Photo: Nancy RubinAn empty AC Transit bus at a Bancroft Way stop near UC Berkeley on March 20, 2020. Photo: Pete RososThe shelves where paper towels should be at Safeway on Shattuck Avenue, March 25, 2020. Photo: Pete RososA lone jogger heads up Bancroft Way towards UC Berkeley on March 20, 2020. Photo: Pete RososThe bulk foods section at the Shattuck Avenue Safeway is out of service. Photo, taken on March 25, 2020: Pete RososA homeless person parks their shopping cart over a steam vent by the Cal campus on March 2, 2020. Photo: Pete RososThe empty schoolyard at Sylvia Mendez Elementary School during the shelter-in-place order. Photo: Pete RososA lone figure in a hazmat suit crosses University Avenue (at Shattuck Avenue) on March 22, 2020. Photo: Pete RososSeabreeze on the Berkeley Marina is closed and boarded up. Photo, taken on March 18, 2020: Pete RososAfternoon commute in downtown Berkeley on March 20, 2020. Photo: Pete RososWatching seagulls at Civic Center Park in downtown Berkeley on March 20, 2020. Photo: Pete Rosos
Berkeleyside is Berkeley, California’s independently-owned local news site. Learn more about the Berkeleyside team. Questions? Email editors@berkeleyside.org.
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