- The mayor of Carry-le-Rouet learned from the media that the first French people arriving from China were quarantined in a holiday center in the town.
- Local residents are worried about stray cats and garbage collection.
- On the port, we especially hope that a psychosis will not settle on the eve of sea urchins, an appointment that doubles the population of this seaside resort in a weekend.
From our special correspondent
It boils inside the small town hall of Carry-le-Rouet, a small seaside resort near Marseille, where 200 first French people are expected this Friday from China to flee the coronavirus. Marina is not fooling. She lives in the aisle of the Vacanciel holiday center which will serve as a quarantine place for the next 14 days, with a view of the sea.
"They are not in an isolated place," she says. Stray cats, household waste, how are they going to remove them? We have no data on this disease. Alain, another resident of the center, felt that something was going on as early as Wednesday, when he saw gendarmes walking his dog. But, like the mayor, he learned the news from the media only on Thursday evening. “The doctors we hear on the news channels say that contradictory things, he worries. And here, it is mainly a village of old people. "
A hastily organized meeting with the population
On the first floor, mayor Jean Montagnac still says his anger at not having been informed in advance by the prefect. He too learned the news from the media. "We could have warned the population and avoided this panic effect," he said. The city councilor seeks to get out of the surprise effect and reassure the inhabitants ... And the many visitors expected over the next weekends for the famous sea urchins: "I want to tell them: don't be afraid. These French are confined, watched, they are far from the city center. "
A call interrupts the exchange with the journalists: it is the Minister of Health, Agnès Buzyn, who announces that she will come in the afternoon to visit the vacation site. It was decided to hastily organize a meeting in a municipal hall with the doctors of the Regional Health Agency, "to reassure the population. "It's a good thing, I expect doctors to explain the situation to them, to reassure people," comments the mayor. I hope people will believe them. Their concern is not illegitimate from the moment when everything has not been clear. "
At the port, the atmosphere is sunny and peaceful. A lady goes well with a mask, but the reactions are mostly amused. René, 83, is going to buy his fish of the day. "Worried? No I'm not ! We are in the process of flouring with these stories, meanwhile we no longer talk about social problems, real subjects. "For Carry's image, it's not good," he adds anyway, with the postcard image of the small port in the background.
"This is not what will scare us! "
"They're confined, aren't they?" Adds Serge, a fisherman in Carry. Anyway, the virus, if it has to happen, whether it passes through here or there ... I hope that this will not create a psychotic effect, that people will not be afraid to come. Sea urchins, we go from 7000 to 14,000 people! ". "They're in quarantine, they can't see anyone, that's not what will scare us," says a passer-by to a cafe owner, delighted by the good weather which is forecast for the weekend: "It's good for business. "I don't understand why they put them there, they just have to put them in Brégançon," said a client. Another resident will suggest another destination: "The Elysée is great, isn't it?" ".
At the pharmacy in the center, it is an uninterrupted parade of all the most classic prescriptions. "This morning is quiet," says Christelle Argellier, the pharmacist. Yesterday evening, his most anxious customers called, or dropped by. "I would have liked to have had a course of action, or a speech to disclose," she regrets. So she went to get the information alone. “People are left to fend for themselves, suddenly fear takes over reason. But the real risk they face today is the flu. »Due to lack of available stock, she could not order additional masks. So she sells them only by unit, and reserves them for flu patients. "I want to be able to have it for a flu mother who wants to protect her baby." "
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