WASHINGTON — For months, the Smithsonian museums have been sitting empty. The buildings normally packed with tourists, now only see essential employees.
At the National Zoo, aside from the gates being closed, things have been business as usual.
"For the animal care, the chores and things we do every day those haven't changed at all. They still need to eat and don't care if there's a pandemic on the horizon or not," said Bryan Amaral, Senior Curator of the Smithsonian's National Zoo.
But the animals have certainly taken notice of the change.
"I have noticed that they notice people much more," said Amaral.
At the Air and Space Museum, it is just the artifacts and security.
"We're still protecting the museum collections, making sure everything stays as normal and well taken care of, best as possible here, so that when people are allowed to come back in the museum, it's here for them and ready to view," said Lt. William Heiuslup, part of the Air and Space Museum security team.
The Smithsonian’s Museum of African American History and Culture also remains closed. It’s at a time where historic protests are sweeping the nation after the death of George Floyd, asking for racial justice.
NMAAHC is a museum that holds so much history of racial injustice and pain of black people in America.
Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch tweeted a photo of a person kneeling in front of the building to pay respects during a week of protests.
"Even though our doors are closed, many of the grounds of our Smithsonian museums continue to serve in this way," Bunch wrote.
There is no reopening date set yet for the Smithsonian museums yet.
"The safety of our visitors and staff is our top priority, and we are following guidelines from health officials and local governments to determine an opening date," said Alexandria Fairchild, with the Smithsonian Office of Public Affairs.
When the museums do open, it will be in stages, starting only with a few of the museums at first.
Visitors can expect to see changes throughout the buildings, including hand sanitizing stations. The institution will also be taking a number of precautions, including limiting the number of entrances and increasing.