At the end of July, that day, at the end of the morning, there are still a dozen of them in front of the Manteau door in Marigot. These people came to ask for help. To someone on the outside, the scene looks normal. Le Manteau is a solidarity association that offers support to people in difficulty. This support takes the form of daytime reception (meals, food packages, support in administrative procedures, etc.) for the entire public and night accommodation for women victims of domestic violence.
That morning, Audrey Gil, the director of the Manteau, confided to Jany Costa, the president, that the team had distributed about twenty food packages. Normally, Le Manteau distributes between 30 and 40 parcels per week. So that day, more than half of the packages normally offered in a week were delivered in a day. Sign of an increase in attendance of the association. For the director, it is above all a sign of what Le Manteau expects in the weeks and even months to come.
The health crisis linked to covid-19 has generated economic and social consequences on the island. “We are indeed expecting more people,” says Audrey Gil. “We have already seen an increase in registration requests,” she explains. And among these new registrations, new profiles. “These are not people who are in the street, without a home. These are people who have housing but lost their jobs due to the covid-19 crisis. They find themselves on short-time work, they can no longer work and their income no longer covers the costs, which is why they come to ask for help, ”explains the director of the Manteau.
(to be continued in our edition tomorrow. Soualigapost.com)
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