The prefect of the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region announced on Tuesday a strengthening of measures to combat Covid-19, with the obligation to wear a mask throughout Marseille and the closure of bars and restaurants at 11:00 p.m. in all the Bouches-du-Rhône.
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These measures, which will come into effect on Wednesday at 11 p.m., were decided in the face of the sharp acceleration of the coronavirus epidemic in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, with an incidence rate of 177 per 100,000 in the second city of France and 131 out of 100,000 for the department, against about 33 per 100,000 on the national average, according to the figures indicated by the regional prefecture in its press release. Wearing a mask, now compulsory in all of Marseille's public space for anyone eleven years of age or over, was already required in the first seven of the 16 arrondissements of France's second city, since August 15. A first measure of this type, on August 8, had imposed the wearing of a mask in certain districts of the Marseille city, around the Old Port in particular.
Measures applicable until September 30
The decision to close bars, restaurants and general food stores will affect the entire department, between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. These two measures are applicable until September 30 inclusive, specifies the press release from the Prefecture. The prefect of the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region had suggested the next implementation of new measures on Monday, during a press conference, speaking of a "worrying situation" of the epidemic in the department and specifically in Marseille. "The situation is sufficiently alarming for additional measures to be considered," said Christophe Mirmand, considering it necessary to act preventively to "avoid a return to a state of local health emergency which would be particularly harmful", in particular economically.
These measures are however less severe than envisaged by some, the prefect having also mentioned Monday the possibility of revising downwards the tonnage of 5,000 people authorized for public events, or even the prohibition of gatherings of more than 10 people in the public space. "We are above all in prevention, in an approach which must be based on a principle of individual responsibility", not "coercion" , Christophe Mirmand had insisted at the time. Referring to these new expected measures, the new mayor of Marseille, the ecologist Michèle Rubirola, had estimated Tuesday morning that we could "not seriously prevent the population from meeting". She had thus declared herself in favor of closing bars and restaurants "rather around 11:00 p.m. to midnight": "It seems to us (would) promote the economy of all those who have suffered from confinement".
If "the question of the opening of places of conviviality arises naturally", had also recognized, Tuesday morning, the president LR of the region Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur, Renaud Muselier, this one had warned against too strict a measure: "We cannot close all the bars and restaurants in the department!" , he had pleaded, calling for taking "restrictive measures" only against establishments that do not comply with sanitary rules. In his press release, Christophe Mirmand specifies that the police "will multiply the controls to ensure that these obligations are well respected". Offenders will be liable to a fine of 135 euros, a fine of up to 3,750 euros and six months in prison in the event of repeated verbalization within fifteen days.
