Widespread face mask use could prevent second COVID-19 wave: study
London: Population-wide use of face masks combined with lockdowns could prevent further waves of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, according to a modelling study.
The findings, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society A, suggest that lockdowns alone will not stop the resurgence of SARS-CoV-2.
The study also shows that even homemade masks with limited effectiveness can dramatically reduce transmission rates if worn by enough people, regardless of whether they show symptoms.
"Our analyses support the immediate and universal adoption of face masks by the public," said lead author Richard Stuttfrom from the University of Cambridge in the UK.
"If widespread face mask use by the public is combined with physical distancing and some lockdown, it may offer an acceptable way of managing the pandemic and re-opening economic activity long before there is a working vaccine," Stuttfrom said.
The researchers worked to link the dynamics of virus spread between individuals with population-level models, to assess different scenarios of facemask adoption combined with periods of lockdown.
The reproduction or 'R' number -- the number of people an infected individual passes the virus onto -- needs to stay below 1.0 for the pandemic to slow, they said.
The study found that if people wear masks whenever they are in public it is twice as effective at reducing 'R' than if masks are only worn after symptoms appear.
In all modelling scenarios, routine face mask use by 50 per cent or more of the population reduced COVID-19 spread to an R less than 1.0, flattening future disease waves and allowing less-stringent lockdowns, the researchers said.
Viral spread reduced further as more people adopted masks when in public, they said.
Hundred per cent mask adoption combined with on/off lockdowns prevented any further disease resurgence for the 18 months required for a possible vaccine, according to the study.
The models suggest that a policy of total face mask adoption can still prevent a second wave even if it isn't instigated until 120 days after an epidemic begins, the researchers said.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
