Kentucky ‘Covidiot’ Explains Cutting Hole On Face Mask: 'Easier To Breathe'

A woman from Kentucky, who was shopping at a local food mart, explained that she had to cut a hole on her face mask because it made it "easier to breathe."

The unidentified lady was inside the S J Food Mart in Lexington, when she was caught on video by the store clerk, Joe Samaan.

Samaan has seen hundreds of customers with different face masks on amid this pandemic. This was the first time, however, that someone's mask had a noticeable cut and a hole, thus defeating the purpose of protecting the wearer or the people around her.

According to the store clerk, the woman approached the counter to pay for her gas. Noticing that she had an unusual face covering on, Samaan asked her where she got her face mask.

"Well since we have to wear them and it makes it hard to breathe, this [cutting it] makes it a lot easier to breathe," the woman replied.

Samaan later uploaded the woman's video, now called "Karen Mask," on TikTok, where it has earned nearly 900,000 reactions and 10,000 comments, with some calling the woman a “covidiot,” a recently coined term for a person who ignores proper health advice for COVID-19.

It comes as the local government of Kentucky announced that the public will have to wear a face mask beginning May 11.

“While it’s gonna seem strange and is probably uncomfortable, I want us to know that this is just another small sacrifice that we can make to make sure that we keep each other safe,” Gov. Andy Beshear said.

The governor also said that grocery stores and other businesses might deny services to customers without face masks. However, he clarified that those who won't have face coverings will not be arrested, fined, or cited by the authorities. Law enforcement workers may only ask people in public to wear the mask.

Beshear's new order to wear face masks in public follows the advice of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), especially in places where social distancing might be more challenging, such as the supermarket and pharmacy.

According to the health agency, face masks may help slow down the spread of coronavirus. The CDC also said that homemade cloth face masks might work as a public health measure provided these are fit and snug, secured to the face, layered with fabrics, frequently washed and does not restrict breathing.