When the Health Minister for the Junta spoke about "letting our guard down" he was no doubt influenced by the Andalusia contagion figures.

The fact is, in comparison with the rest of the country, most Andalusian provinces remain in the red on the map included in this article.

These figures, which come from the Red Nacional de Vigilancia Epidemiológica, put Granada as the fifth highest figures for a province within Spain, thanks to a slow but steady increase.

The contagion rate per 100,000 inhabitants for our province stands at 160.82, whereas the national average is only 96.6 per 100k.

Admittedly, within Andalucía, Huelva has a 212.31 contagion rate, Córdoba 196.94, Sevilla 186.47 and Jaén 174.25. On the opposite end, Almería has 59.9 per 100,000 inhabitants.

Is the cause the increased tourism and influx of people to the coast? Well, that explains Granada but how come Almería is not so affected? Even Málaga with 131 and Cádiz with 112? Across the country on the east coast, Valencia and Castellón are prime, seaside attractions for Madrileños, yet they have contagion rates of only 38.1 and 29.14, respectively.

And why are inland, Andalusian provinces like Jaén, Córdoba and Sevilla so high if there is no coastal lure to them?

Anyway, it was announced this morning that the Central Governmet will revoke the mask obligation in open-air circumstances as early as next weekend, but that doesn’t mean that Andalucía will go along with it.

Editorial comment: theories, anybody?

(News: Granada, Andalucia)