Cuba urges citizens to make own masks as it braces for coronavirus

Mar 12, 2020 News

HAVANA – (Reuters) – Cuba’s textile industry has been drafted to fabricate masks while the government is also urging citizens to make their own, as the Communist-run island braces for the potential arrival of coronavirus amid a cash crunch and dwindling supplies worldwide.
While state officials say there have been no confirmed cases so far, they have ramped up campaigns on how to ward off the infection, through talks at workplace and community meetings, and through state media.

A health worker fumigates at a government youth assistance centre, as a preventive measure against coronavirus. REUTERS/Juan Carlos Ulate

“We can make (masks) at home using material like cotton, cloth, linen,” according to 5 de Septiembre, the state newspaper of Cienfuegos province.
“These are washable and we can carry several with us, depending on how many hours we will be in public spaces or areas with a lot of people.”
While residents of other countries have queued up at pharmacies and stores to stock up on surgical and dust masks as the epidemic spreads, these are not usually available for sale to the general population in Cuba.
But government officials have said this week they want to ensure the whole population can either buy industrial masks or make their own.
Supporters of Cuba’s centralized economy say it allows the government to effectively divert resources toward priorities in times of crisis, while its focus on preventive healthcare helps it contain disease outbreaks.
The country is strapped for cash, partly due to a hike in U.S. sanctions, and it faces shortages of basic goods including medicines, not to mention supplies needed to fight off coronavirus.
Susana Navarro, the manager of a state-owned textile workshop in Havana, said it was waiting for the correct fabric to arrive to start making masks.
“There is a deficit in the country,” Navarro said in an interview.
So far, Latin America has been spared the worst ravages of the virus. Around 100 cases have been reported in the region since Brazil announced the first case on Feb. 26.
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Costa Rica reports 22 coronavirus cases, nearly double prior tally
SAN JOSE – (Reuters) – Costa Rica’s health ministry confirmed yesterday that the number of coronavirus cases in the Central American country increased to 22, up from 13 previously reported.
Of the cases confirmed before, one was an American woman who lives in Costa Rica, while two others were U.S. citizens who had arrived as tourists from New York, the government said.
It also said that one other person who was infected, a 54-year-old Costa Rican, was in a state hospital.

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