40% of those polled are against wearing a mask outdoors, while several cities have already taken the decision to make it compulsory in certain crowded places.
The inhabitants of Évreux (Eure) are divided. In a survey published on Tuesday 4th August 2020 on our Facebook page and entitled ” For or against wearing a mask outdoors “, many of you responded, while an epidemic rebound of Covid-19 has been observed in France since several days.
Out of a total of 566 responses, 228 people were “against” wearing a mask outdoors (in red, on the graph), 153 “for” (green) and 185 “for under certain conditions” (orange), only in crowded places (markets, shopping streets, etc.). As a percentage, this gives 40% of respondents “against” the measure.
Precautionary principle
The “pro” camp invokes the precautionary principle, and some fear the return of confinement. Others point to the non-respect of barrier gestures by part of the population. Opponents of the mask outside speak of the difficulty in breathing in the hot weather. One respondent replied: “Making the mask compulsory is to muzzle people and spread fear”, while another speaks of “an attack on freedom”. A proof, if any more were needed, of the deep division which exists on the question.
An epidemic rebound
For the time being, neither the town hall of Évreux nor the prefecture has mentioned the possibility of making the mask compulsory outside in the streets of the Ebroïcian city, while this same decision has already been taken in many cities such as Nice, Lille, Deauville or even Paris.
The scientific community has not established any formal, firm and definitive consensus on the issue of wearing a mask outdoors. This device is most often valid as a “precautionary principle” and does not replace the need to respect barrier gestures.
In Normandy, the effective reproduction rate of the virus has increased by 20% in recent days, to exceed the vigilance threshold set at 1. This figure, corresponding to the number of people that a positive case will infect, is now 1.19. “These increases are explained by the detection of new situations of grouped cases, in the course of management”, specifies the ARS, adding that nine clusters remain unfenced in the territory. From July 26th to August 1st, 2,103 tests were carried out in the Eure, and 21 were positive.
