Woman strips and puts underwear over her face after she is refused service at post office for not wearing mask
A woman in Ukraine got creative when she was refused service at a post office for not wearing a face mask, fashioning one out of her underwear, and then using it to get around the rules. As per the John Hopkins tracker, Ukraine has reported close to 22,000 cases of the novel coronavirus and has enforced strict rules to slow the spread of Covid-19 that require citizens to carry identification and wear face masks in public.
Under the rules, as per Metro, a "public place" includes a part of any building which the public has access to, which could be shops, markets, subways, parks, playgrounds, and public transport. Refusal to do so could result in the person being denied service, as the unidentified woman learned when she visited a post office operated by Nova Poshta to pick up her parcel but found herself in a bind.
After one of the employees informed her that she would not be receiving her package until she wore a face mask, the woman took the extreme step of pulling down her jeans, taking off her underwear, and placing them on her face. She then puts her jeans back on, leaving the underwear on her face. The entire incident was captured on a CCTV camera at the branch, with the Daily Mail reporting that the employee eventually ended up handing over the woman's parcel to her.
The administration for Nova Poshta, which has 2,300 branches throughout Ukraine, confirmed that the incident had taken place though they did not specify the branch. "Our employee asked the woman to put on a face mask and even gave her one for free. But the woman refused to use it," a spokesperson told local media. The company also said they do not condemn the customer's actions and that they will not be reporting her to the police. However, the employee who posted the footage on social media is said to be facing punishment.
This is not the first time that someone decided to don a face mask they made out of their underwear either. WPXI previously reported that Spirit Airlines was investigating after a man was spotted boarding a plane out of the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Latrobe using women's underwear as a "face mask." Spirit said all its passengers and crew are required to wear masks because of the pandemic but that extras were available to those who did not have them. It was also unclear if the man had put the underwear on his face before or after boarding.
"We are aware of that inappropriate face covering, and as a result, we have taken action internally on this isolated event to ensure compliance with CDC guidance on face coverings," the airline said in a statement. "Spirit’s requirement for wearing face coverings went into effect on May 11, and we include reminders in our communications to Guests, which include emails, call centers, website, social media channels, in preflight announcements, and more."