New Rochelle, a historic city thirty minutes from New York, was known for its tranquility and its marina lapped by the Atlantic. This was before the quiet town of 80,000 souls became, in early March, a hotbed of Covid-19 in New York State, the most affected American state with more than 10,000 patients. At the time, the commune had 120 cases, half of the total recorded in the state.
Containment area around a synagogue
In mid-March, Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York State, took the exceptional step of establishing a “containment zone” around the man-used synagogue that was responsible for the spread of the disease. virus – a 50-year-old lawyer in recovery.
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This measure, synonymous with the closure of public places and the ban on gatherings over a radius of more than one kilometer, was the first of its kind in the United States to counter the crisis.
The Democratic leader also decided to send the National Guard, the reserve army, to the site to distribute food and carry out cleanings. A few days later, a drive-thru testing site was set up outside the town.
“American capital of the coronavirus”
« Being the US capital of the coronavirus doesis not an enviable label, s’exclame Bob Cox, fondateur du site d’information local Talk of the Sound. Cuomo was right to mark the occasion to make the country understand the serious of the situation, especially since Donald Trump did nothing. But New Rochelle was already taking action. VSit wasn’t no need to send the army! ».
Wendy Vigroux, owner of a yoga studio, was hostile to sending the National Guard, but she has since changed her mind. ” The authorities’ decisions have limited the new case », Thinks this entrepreneur who lives in the containment zone.
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In this area, only individuals in quarantine, in contact with the sick at the synagogue and elsewhere, were not allowed to leave their homes. The others, like the Vigroux, could do as they saw fit. But with the entry into force, Sunday, March 22, of new containment measures throughout the state, they will only be able to go out to do their shopping or other essential tasks.
Solidarity and efficiency in New Rochelle
« Before, I tended to order products on Amazon. Now i prefer the little ones independent shops. Many locals are doing the same today. Solidarity is contagious », Says Wendy. She has already invited people in quarantine, including the family of the man at the center of the spread of the virus, to free yoga classes when her studio reopens. ” The sick man’s wife and her husband received horrible messages when none of it was their fault. It could have happened to anyone », She adds.
Lisa Keller, a professor at Purchase University, has seen anti-Chinese and anti-Jewish messages appear in her online neighborhood group. ” They were quickly countered », She specifies. However, this historian is worried about the effects of the crisis on New Rochelle, a city that has welcomed many marginalized since its foundation by Huguenots who left La Rochelle at the end of the 17th century.e century to escape Catholic persecution. ” Historically, it is one of the most open cities in the region. But does it matter-it still? She asks herself.
No deaths have been recorded in New Rochelle, which today has 185 cases of Covid-19. Figures that ” evolve All the time », Recognizes the Mayor Noam Bramson: an evolution linked to the reinforcement of the screening system, not necessarily to new patients. ” Lsocial structures have held, he congratulates himself. Municipal agencies, associations, schools, residents have all reacted with maturity. The city rose to the challenge “. It will take that to overcome the economic difficulties of tomorrow.
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