The empty streets of Arcachon in time of confinement. - Clément Carpentier / 20 Minutes

  • The arrival in large numbers of city dwellers on the Atlantic coast at the start of confinement could raise fears of health consequences.
  • Finally, the exile was less important than feared and no cluster has developed.
  • After the first complicated days, confinement is respected for the moment thanks to strict rules and a collective awareness of the danger.

This Tuesday, April 28, it's really not a time to put on your shorts and small polo shirt to go for a walk in the small pedestrian streets of Arcachon or on the seaside. Apart from a few customers at the bakery in the center - town, there is not a cat. The waterspouts are surely there for something.

But a few weeks ago, the picture was very different on the Girondin coast. And in particular this “pre-containment” weekend of March 14 and 15 where locals like Bernard observed “a massive arrival of city dwellers” arriving hastily in their family homes or second homes. Some have even gone so far as to rent goods quickly to escape their apartment.

Immediately, the Parisians found themselves in the viewfinder with this question: Will they bring the virus with them when Ile-de-France was already heavily affected by the Covid-19 epidemic? According to some studies, nearly one million Ile-de-France residents left their region in the first days of confinement. And Philippe de Gonneville, the mayor of Lège-Cap Ferret, still recognizes it today, "the first days were very difficult to manage with newcomers who thought they were on vacation". “The tension was high, says a pharmacist from Arcachon, they asked me for sunscreen and masks that I of course did not have. Some were even aggressive. ”

A less massive urban exodus than predicted

If at the time many were afraid of possible health consequences like an anti-Parisian tag seen in the corner, in the end the preserved areas remained so until today like New Aquitaine or Pays-de-la-Loire. "No home has formed in recent weeks in our communities," says Philippe de Gonneville. And the region remains one of the least affected or even the least affected in France. So why ?

Coronavirus in New Aquitaine: The ARS "calls not to relax the efforts of containment" despite the slowdown of the epidemic https://t.co/BpWQrxaNH4 via @ 20minutesBord pic.twitter.com/355JMgpsE9

- 20minutesbordeaux (@ 20minutesbord) April 28, 2020

First of all, the urban exodus was less important than what one could make it believe. Even if at Cap Ferret the population increased from 9,000 to 12,000 inhabitants, according to the INSEE, the population did not increase by more than 1%. "The time was very short to pack up between the first rumors of confinement and its application, this limited travel", thinks Martine, installed in Arcachon for 20 years.

For health authorities like the ARS, limiting the spread of the virus (the first projections made by the Pasteur Institute show that the percentage of potentially infected people as of May 11, 2020 would be 1.4% in the region against 5, 7% for the national average) would have two explanations: the containment occurred closely after the start of the epidemic in the region and there was no reason to deplore the presence of "clusters" (except one in Lot- et-Garonne, but which was quickly mastered).

Coronavirus in New Aquitaine: This summer, tourism will rhyme with proximity and French visitors https://t.co/qRUeEzG13M via @ 20minutesEco pic.twitter.com/8yCAYoM0L5

- 20minutesEco (@ 20minutesEco) April 27, 2020

Stricter rules and collective awareness

The evolution of the epidemic at the national level has also had its effect. For an elected official from the Arcachon Basin, “the mortality figures have the same effect on everyone and everyone quickly understood that confinement had to be respected to the letter, regardless of whether the beach is five minutes or no ". The most recalcitrant were very quickly pushed there by his fellow mayors with many arrested. The latter also did not hesitate to request reinforcements from the gendarmerie and the police.

For example, this late Wednesday morning, all motorists were checked at La Teste-de-Buch. Paul lives as close as possible to the water in the 44 hectare district of Cap Ferret, he confirms that “the police are extremely present and punish! They are even on motorbikes in the sand to verbalize those who do not respect confinement, ”added the young man.

Coronavirus: When to return and how? Ile-de-France residents left to confine themselves to "green" in the blur https://t.co/uGZfez4SXS via @ 20minutesParis pic.twitter.com/XLADkXE0d1

- 20minutes Paris / IDF (@ 20minutesparis) April 27, 2020

Between an urban exodus less massive than announced, even stricter rules and a collective awareness, the virus has not gained ground in areas preserved by the epidemic to the delight of locals. But beware, the local elected officials watch for the slightest sign of relaxation and are worried, like Philippe de Gonneville, about the "frustration of some who could emerge at the time of the deconfinement and the possible reopening of the beaches after May 11" . At least on this point, he can be reassured, they will remain closed at least until June 2 according to the Prime Minister's announcements on Tuesday.

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  • Aquitaine
  • Bordeaux
  • Beach
  • Arcachon
  • Covid 19
  • Coronavirus
  • Confinement
  • Health