Total containment?
Partial?
Reinforced curfew?
The inhabitants of the Alpes-Maritimes are, this Sunday morning, awaiting potential new restrictive measures to fight against the coronavirus.
Visiting the Côte d'Azur this Saturday, the Minister for Solidarity and Health, Olivier Véran, gave the prefect until the end of the weekend, in consultation with the Regional Health Agency, to "take additional measures to protect this population of the Alpes-Maritimes in the face of this epidemic outbreak ”.
With an incidence rate - that is to say the number of positive cases per 100,000 inhabitants - which varies between 500 and 700 depending on the sectors of the department, Covid-19 is omnipresent.
This rate is also the highest in France, three times higher than the national average.
If he estimated, at the microphone of France Info, that the situation "is not out of control, since we are at the limit of saturation of hospitals", with a British variant present at 50% and 500 new patients each day (according to the figures of Olivier Véran) in Nice, Christian Estrosi, the mayor (LR) of Nice said this Sunday morning in favor of new restrictive measures.
The elected representative also mentioned some tracks considered for the coming days.
Discourage tourists, delay the start of the school year
According to Christian Estrosi, “we cannot inevitably continue to see the virus rise.
We must take a decision, a strong measure, he wished.
Whether it is an extended curfew, confinement, it must be over a well-defined period to see the effects.
The former motorcyclist plans to bring out his anti seasonal rentals decree, which had been challenged by the courts a few days ago.
In this line, he said he was in favor of confinement on weekends "because we know that everyone is rushing here, because we have very beautiful days.
If we break the possibility of being able to take advantage of all this, we do not deprive economic activity of running the week.
This is a measure that would discourage visitors ”.
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The elected official said he was based on figures to support the causes, according to him, of the current situation.
“As of December 20, we had 20 flights a day to Nice International Airport.
We have increased to 120 flights per day, coming from Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian countries, the United Arab Emirates, Russia ... If tourists have always been welcome, today we are in a situation where we cannot be. to permit ".
Since January 1, his municipal police sent 7,994 fines to 135 euros, he detailed, assuming his "unpopularity".
The former minister wants these restrictive measures not to be the only means of action.
Referring to the massive screenings and the vaccination campaign, he welcomed the delivery, announced by Olivier Véran, of 3,500 doses of Pfizer in the department on Monday and thousands of AztraZeneca doses planned in the coming days.
Christian Estrosi also relies on saliva tests for all the municipalities of the department which will request it for their schoolchildren at the start of the school year.
If he does not want schools to be closed, the mayor (LR) intends to be able to postpone the start of the school year by one week or to be able to close them in the event of a lack of staff.
Five tracks studied
For her part, still on France Info, the deputy La République en Marche (LREM) of the department Alexandra Valetta Ardisson, unveiled the five tracks studied, after having participated in a meeting of "more than 2h30" between the prefect and the elected officials of the department.
According to the elected, the two measures which hold the rope are a "confinement targeted on the weekend and only on the urban area, namely the coast" or then "the prohibition of entries into the department, unless there is a compelling reason" .
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She mentions three other avenues: "the general wearing of a mask over the entire territory of the Alpes-Maritimes", "the strengthening of controls, because we do not always respect the wearing of the mask" and a change in the "gauge for shopping centers ".
Neither the mayor of Nice nor the deputy wanted general confinement.
They are now awaiting the announcement, this Sunday evening, of the measures that will achieve consensus.