Arizona Bar Bans Vapor Over Covid-19 Concerns

A bar in Chandler, Arizona is asking customers to vape outside because they worry vape clouds could spread Covid-19. The bar, Tom Ryan’s, recently took to their social media pages to inform customers that vaping was no longer allowed indoors.

Bar manager Paige Lokkessmoe said that after seeing a spike in COVID-19 cases it wasn’t sitting well with them to allow people to keep vaping inside, according to an article on azfamily.com. Numerous public health experts, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have said there is no evidence e-cigarette vapor spreads Covid.19

“We decided to stop allowing vaping in the bar because we were, kind of, just looking at the vaping smoke and seeing it settle everywhere around us. And the concern is the ice [and] the bottles that have pour spouts on them,” Lokkessmoe said.

According to Dan Quan, a toxicologist from the University of Arizona College of Medicine, the droplets that people produce when they sneeze or cough are the same as when they exhale, say, a cloud of smoke.

“Let’s say I take a deep breathe in and I exhale forcibly, I mean, there are still some droplets that form– and that’s why we suggest everyone wear masks because it does cut down on the amount of droplets dispersed in the air,” Quan said, adding that if you’re going to vape, take it outside because the fresh air will help dilute the droplets. Vaping and smoking will still be allowed on the patio at Tom Ryan’s.