“Since the end of last week, we have seen an increase in both the incidence rate and the positivity rate in our department. Faced with this, we could not remain inactive ”. These words, from Jean-Francis Treffel, the prefect of Mayenne, sound like a serious alert. The department, located in the Pays de la Loire region and which has some 300,000 inhabitants, has recorded for two weeks a significant increase in the number of people tested positive for Covid-19.
What's going on in Mayenne?
Since June 25, the number of cases in Mayenne has quadrupled, reaching 240 people on Wednesday. Between June 25 and 30 in Mayenne, the number of new Covid-19 positive cases increased from 54 to 109 and then from 109 to 219 between June 30 and July 6. It is this doubling twice and in two weeks of the number of cases discovered that worries the authorities, suggesting that the circulation of the virus is more intense.
At the CHU de Laval, the capital of the department, four people have been hospitalized since July 6 and two patients have been admitted to intensive care.
How to explain this increase?
This return of the epidemic in the region is due to the appearance of six "clusters", including four in Laval. The latter were identified in a school, an accommodation facility for dependent elderly people (Ehpad), a social reintegration center and a city slaughterhouse. The others were located in a home for young workers and a work assistance service establishment in Château-Gontier and in another slaughterhouse in Craon.
For Jean-Daniel Lelièvre, head of the infectious diseases department at the Henri Mondor hospital in Créteil, the spread of the virus in the department may also be linked to the general relaxation of the French vis-à-vis the barrier gestures. "If everyone puts on their mask in transport or at work and wash their hands, that's fine ... But we can clearly see that this is not the case. "
What are the authorities going to do?
In order to stop the progression of the epidemic, the prefecture of Mayenne is counting on a massive test plan in two parts. "Health Insurance will send a screening voucher by email and post to its policyholders", explains the prefect, Jean-Francis Treffel. "We will first test the inhabitants of the commune of Huisserie, which experienced a significant rate of positive people, then Laval and then the other communes of the department, starting with the south and going up towards the north", continues -he. The first letters will leave from Health Insurance during the day.
To hope to test the 300,000 Mayennais, the prefecture will also set up from Monday two "drives" in the agglomeration of Laval. People who wish can be tested free of charge from their car and without making an appointment.
Mayennais tested positive will then be isolated. The most vulnerable people will be accommodated in an establishment in Laval. "And for those who cannot isolate themselves at home, we have 35 isolation beds at this stage," said the prefect.
Should we fear local reconfiguration?
"The virus at this stage has not shown that it was able to circulate outside (s) zones" of the cluster, held to reassure the Minister of Health Olivier Véran this Friday. For the time being, the prefecture ensures that a local reconfiguration like in Catalonia is "absolutely not on the agenda". "If people understand the situation, we don't have to go to these extremes, otherwise we have to resort to it," warns Jean-Daniel Lelièvre, head of the infectious diseases department at Henri Hospital Mondor in Créteil.
With the weekend and July 14, population displacements seem inevitable. "We just have to be careful and keep in mind that we will continue to live with this virus for a very long time," says the specialist.
Newsletter - The essentials of the news
Every morning, the news seen by Le ParisienI'm registering
Your email address is collected by Le Parisien to allow you to receive our news and commercial offers. Find out more
For the specialist, this epidemic surge in Mayenne is not necessarily the sign of the arrival of a second wave. “As long as we manage to identify the clusters, it is because we are doing the job well. We have the knowledge to extinguish these fires, but we must remain vigilant. "