COVID 19. Morbihan: firefighters track down the virus in the sewers

Tracking down traces of COVId 19 in sewers… This is a technique developed by the Marseille fire brigade battalion with the emergence of the health crisis linked to the coronavirus in France. It is of formidable preventive effectiveness since it makes it possible to detect the presence of the virus 4 to 6 days even before the infected people feel the first symptoms. This saves precious time for the health authorities, which makes it possible to set up individual screening measures and isolate infected people much earlier than with PCR tests. Because it is exactly the same process which is used to detect the virus, except that there, it is a question of fetching it in the waste water leaving a particular site. As a general rule, these are residences for the elderly or public services such as rescue centers, schools, etc.

In recent weeks, this technique has been deployed in Morbihan. A group of firefighters from the department made the trip to Marseille to be trained by the marine firefighters. A man, Patrick Guérin, director of the Vannes company OpenHealth, played a decisive role in this operation. He works with the marine firefighters and facilitated the connection between the two structures …

From now on, a dedicated team from the biological, chemical and nuclear risks unit headed by Lieutenant Colonel Alain Flegeau is responsible for carrying out these checks in Morbihan in the same way as the departmental analysis laboratory which depends on the Departmental Council. About twenty checks have already been carried out, but none has been positive …

This device comes in addition to the tool kit available to the Regional Health Agency to try to curb the epidemic we have been facing for months. This was explained by Claire Muzellec-Kabouche, departmental director of the ARS of Morbihan, Monday afternoon during a life-size demonstration organized in the presence of the prefect, Patrice Faure, at the Tohannic retirement home in Valves.

Note that the potential presence of COVID 19 has other consequences, which weigh heavily on the finances of local communities. Indeed, for a year, the spreading of sludge from wastewater treatment plants has been prohibited. The sludge must be hygienized, which represents a considerable additional cost (read our file on this subject by clicking here)