A grandma in Spain is spending her time in quarantine sewing face masks amid a shortage in the country.
Former seamstress Margarita Gil Baro, from Jerez de la Frontera, Cadiz, is working around the clock, making 50 of the masks a day.
The 84-year-old has been sewing since she was 10-years-old and decided to put her skills to use in a time of desperate need.
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Speaking to El Mundo, Domingo - one of her seven children - said: "'I cannot sit idly by watching this happen, learning that there are more and more sick and dead. I'm going to start making masks', she told me. And she started to make masks."
As admirable and noble as it is of Margarita to dedicate her time and efforts to making these masks, in an ideal world, it would not be necessary. But the sad reality is that Spain is sorely lacking in face masks, with pharmacies in Madrid and Valencia running out of stock way back in January, according to The Local.
Clothing label Inditex donated 1.5 million masks to the Ministry of Health last Monday, while prisoners at Córdoba, Alcalá de Guadaira, Huelva, Alcalá-Meco, Topas and Sevilla Iprions have been making masks in workshops.
It would be wrong to assume though that homemade masks can guarantee us protection from Covid-19. Indeed, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises that they should only be used as a last resort.
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Its guidance states: "In settings where face masks are not available, HCP (Health Care Professionals) might use homemade masks (e.g., bandana, scarf) for care of patients with Covid-19 as a last resort. However, homemade masks are not considered PPE, since their capability to protect HCP is unknown. Caution should be exercised when considering this option.
"Homemade masks should ideally be used in combination with a face shield that covers the entire front (that extends to the chin or below) and sides of the face."
That said, these are desperate times and Margarita's selflessness and dedication can only help. The challenge now though is getting her more supplies.
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Domingo said: "She told me on the phone that I can buy more fabric for her. She has asked me for 20 metres. What I don't know is how I am going to buy it and how I am going to take it away, because the fabric is not within the limits allowed by the decree."
It's okay to not panic. LADbible and UNILAD's aim with our Coronavirus campaign, Cutting Through, is to provide our community with facts and stories from the people who are either qualified to comment or have experienced first-hand the situation we're facing. For more information from the World Health Organisation on Coronavirus, click here.
Topics: World News, Inspirational, Coronavirus, Spain, Community