Castillo de San Marcos gets hundreds of visitors on first day back after shutdown

The end of the federal government shutdown has sparked new life in St. Augustine. On Monday, hundreds of people returned to see two national monuments that had been closed since before Christmas, the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument and Fort Matanzas National Monument.

There’s excitement in the air as St. Augustine’s most famous fort opens its doors again.

“Thank heavens it’s open again,” said Margaret Webster. By 2 p.m. more than 500 people had already purchased a ticket to tour the Castillo de San Marcos.

It’s the first time anyone has been inside following the longest partial government shutdown in history.

“I think everybody here is just pleased tourists are we are pleased,” said Webster. It’s not just the visitors who are happy but also about 40 park rangers who are back to work after 35 days.

STORY: National Parks reopen after government shutdown

Steven Roberts, Chief of Interpretation and Education, said there were a lot of smiles and a lot of hugs among his work family. “It was tough mentally for a lot of our staff, and they’re excited to be back and serve the public,” said Roberts.

Roberts said they took a significant financial hit during the shutdown. “Somewhere between $350,000 to $400,000 of revenue that did not come in to the park,” said Roberts.

It’s too early to know if the national park will need to make cuts down the road in order to make up for that loss.

STORY: Government shutdown: Trump signs bill to temporarily reopen government

On Sunday, it took staff and volunteers six hours to get the Castillo ready for opening day.

Fort Matanzas also had to be cleaned before it welcomed back visitors.

Now that they’re back in business, Roberts said there’s a sense of relief.

“Just excited to be here, in addition to the paycheck, our staff feel very passionately about their national park,” said Roberts.

Cox Media Group