Abstract
Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, many governments have recommended or mandated the wearing of fitted face masks to limit the transmission of the virus via aerosols. The public had, in essence, two choices: single-use, disposable surgical masks and multi-use, washable cloth masks. While the use of cloth masks has been discussed, there are, at present no baseline data that establish the actual proportions of mask types worn in the public. This paper, which presents the findings of rapid walk-through surveys of shopping venues in Albury (Southern New South Wales, Australia), demonstrates that, overall, 33.6% of masks worn by the public were cloth masks.
Highlights
Between January and March 2020, COVID-19, the disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) [1], rapidly developed into a global pandemic
Until the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, three types of face masks were common, but restricted in their use to specific professions and activities: single-use, disposable surgical masks used by the medical profession (Figure 1a); single-use, disposable P2/KN95 type masks used in the construction industry to filter low levels of dust and paint fumes (Figure 1b); and full face masks with exchangeable air filters for more hazardous work [8,9,10,11]
Prior to COVID-19, face masks were worn in non-professional settings only in a number of Asian countries, a practice spurred by the SARS-CoV-1 epidemic of 2003 [12]
Summary
Between January and March 2020, COVID-19, the disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) [1], rapidly developed into a global pandemic. Measures to curb or at least slow the progress of COVID-19 were enacted by governments at each national level. The high demand for face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic led to an expanded production of single-use, disposable surgical-type masks and a proliferation of washable and reusable face masks made from various types of fabric (Figure 1c). These were offered by major clothing retailers as well as by a cottage industry using templates provided by national drapery chains [13]
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