Courtesy translation: Mask requirement in Wiesbaden elementary schools starting Nov. 9

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WIESBADEN, HESSEN, GERMANY

11.04.2020

Courtesy Story

U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden   

Press release of the city of Wiesbaden, 04 NOV 2020
Courtesy Translation: Lena Stange, Public Affairs Specialist

Mask requirement in elementary schools starting Nov. 9

The administrative staff of the state capital Wiesbaden met again on Wednesday, Nov. 4 and decided, among other things, that wearing a mask will be mandatory in elementary schools.

In the past few days, there has been a lack of clarity about the requirement to wear a mouth and nose covering in class in elementary schools. So far, there was no mask requirement, only an urgent recommendation by the health authority. As a result, every principal had to make a decision for his or her elementary school. In order to have a uniform regulation in Wiesbaden in the future, the administrative staff decided that all elementary schools in Wiesbaden have to comply with a mask requirement in class starting Monday, Nov. 9, until (including) Friday, Nov. 27. The elementary schools will be informed about details and background in a separate letter.

According to state regulations, school sports is currently only permitted in schools with a comprehensive hygiene concept in place and if the recommendations on hygiene by the Robert Koch Institute are followed. In order to create a uniform regulation for Wiesbaden here too, the administrative staff discussed a general ban on school sports in closed rooms, including swimming pools. There was already such a ban in Wiesbaden, but the corresponding municipal general directive has expired. Non-contact outdoor school sports were exempt from the ban. The administrative staff will deal with the issue again in its next meeting on Friday, Nov. 6, and then possibly make a decision. This also applies to a mask requirement in heavily frequented places and areas such as the pedestrian zone or the station forecourt.

In Wiesbaden, Hessen state regulations and general municipal directives currently apply to contact restrictions. In order to make it easier for citizens to recognize in the future what they have to comply with, the general municipal directive restricting contacts will be lifted soon. Then only the specifications from the Hessen state regulation apply. According to this regulation, stays in public are only permitted alone or with members of your own household or one other household up to a group size of no more than ten people. A minimum distance of 1.5 meters must be maintained when meeting other people. Meetings of religious communities for the common practice of religion as well as funeral ceremonies and burials are permitted if hygiene and distance rules and other requirements from the state regulation are complied with.

Since Monday, Nov. 2, 15 soldiers from the German Armed Forces have been helping the health authority with contact tracing, index person care and on the quarantine telephone. They are on duty every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., including weekends. Lord Mayor Gert-Uwe Mende and Mayor and Head of the Health Department Dr. Oliver Franz officially welcomed the soldiers in the state capital on Wednesday, Nov. 4, and thanked them as well as the local staff for their work.

The health authority can be reached by phone at [phone]; Mondays to Fridays from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and on the weekends from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The employees of the Hessen-wide Corona hotline answer questions about health and quarantine daily from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on [phone]. Further questions, concerns and information about the corona virus will be answered Monday to Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Current information on the subject of Corona is also available at wiesbaden.de/coronavirus.

Source: https://www.wiesbaden.de/guiapplications/newsdesk/publications/Landeshauptstadt_Wiesbaden/141010100000392302.php

• Date Taken: 11.04.2020
• Date Posted: 11.16.2020 10:53
• Story ID: 382396
• Location: WIESBADEN, HESSEN, DE