A Florida sheriff ordered his officers to not wear face masks -- and banned the safety gear from his office -- even as the southern US state has hit record daily coronavirus death tolls. "My order will stand as is when you are on-duty/working as my employee and representing my Office – masks will not be worn," the email read. He also said that visitors to the sheriff's office would not be allowed to wear masks for the same reason: "for identification purposes of any individual walking into a lobby." Mask-wearing is not compulsory in Florida -- only recommended -- but the state is one of the most severe hotspots of the epidemic in the US. Woods's office did not respond to AFP's request for comment Wednesday.

Source: Standard Digital August 13, 2020 15:21 UTC