They are also the "heroes" of this war against the Covid-19. They are neither a doctor nor a nurse, but they are also "on the front line" against the coronavirus. Delivery man, chauffeur-driven VTC, garbage collector, cashier, truck driver: often poorly protected, they told AFP their daily lives in contact with a sometimes unruly population.

In addition to the police and gendarmes, responsible for enforcing confinement, it is this France, sometimes precarious, that Emmanuel Macron asked to "continue to run" the country.

Chantal, 60, cashier: "some people take it for fun"

"We have gloves, gel and a plastic wall at each box but the customers do not respect the instructions, it's the fair, we have to be the police", growls Chantal Patsinakis, 60, cashier at the Carrefour de Jonage (Rhône).

On the first day of confinement on Tuesday, a man blew him on the fruit and vegetable aisle. "He said laughing + thin, you're going to have coronavirus +, it's serious, some people take it for fun".

"We are as requisitioned by the state, we wonder why we are forbidden the right of withdrawal. We ask everyone to seal off and we are on the front line."

Jean-Marc, 44, VTC driver: "I don't touch the suitcases anymore"

Former paramedic converted as a VTC for a few months, Jean-Marc Dubigny, based in Arpajon (Essonne), is scrupulous on hygiene: "I disinfect the car between each client with wipes and I pass a disinfectant spray at the end of service , I no longer serve customers' hands, I no longer touch suitcases. "

Since Monday, the Ministry of Transport has prohibited taxis and VTC to take a customer in the front seat. Jean-Marc goes further since he only accepts "races with a single passenger".

Often, "it is not to go to work or go to a medical appointment, but to have dinner with friends, or to return to the parents at midnight after having spent the day with the boyfriend or girlfriend".

Célia, 29, truck driver: "we are plague victims"

In her 44 tonnes, Célia Arnaud "worries" about bringing the virus back to her family, but continues to transport brioches and pasta throughout France, like many truck drivers.

In the logistics bases, the reception of the storekeepers "is random", stresses the driver of 29 years. "Sometimes we are expected with masks and hydroalcoholic gel, but there are factories where people still kiss each other on the wind. I clearly say no."

On the rest areas, "we are treated like plague victims", she sighs: the showers and closed sanitary facilities complicate her hygiene, many no longer serve coffee for truckers. "And on top of that, we work twice as much to replenish because people buy far too much for their needs."

Romain, 23, garbage collector: "already used to touch the shit of others"

"Frankly, virus or not, we are already so used to touching the shit of others, that we don't think about it anymore", quips Romain Andral, garbage collector in Sète (Hérault). He works without a mask or an alcoholic gel "because of the shortage".

The tour is carried out by two, the driver and the collector. "We removed the second pickup to respect the distance" in the truck, he explains.

"Many of us turn around in vehicles, so we disinfect the steering wheel and seats with wipes at the end of each service," he adds.

Positive point: Sète is "a small town with a lot of traffic jams" and the streets emptied by containment, "it helps a lot!"

Erwan *, 24, delivery boy: mask and gel, "too bad"

"I hope we can be completely confined," says Erwan, delivery man in Paris. Despite his fear of being exposed, the delivery man still has trouble coping with barrier gestures. "Frankly my management gave me gel, but I leave it in the truck, it's too bad, we put it when we go back up," he explains.

Even when signing the delivery contract, the delivery man hands his own pen to customers.

As for the mask, he does not see the use of it: "we make great efforts during deliveries, it would be impossible, it feels hot and it is difficult to breathe well".

AFP

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