Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak

[Harry]

4 hours ago, The Artful Dodger said:

There has been an uptick in cases in Europe but most importantly hospitals are not seeing a corresponding uptick in patients. There is a lag but given this has been the case for a week I'd suggest either the people contracting the disease are younger/healthier or the disease is simply milder, like all corona viruses to flourish it must not incapacitate or kill the host. 

This local lockdown in parts of the North is a farce, pubs/hotels are still open but you can't pop round to see your family?

A key difference now in most places compared to the original outbreak is the rate of testing, and criteria to qualify for a test have become more favorable towards painting a true picture of the extent of the outbreak.. where before most countries were identifying only the worst affected cases and their close contacts, whereas now they are testing anyone who wants a test.. 

[Honey Honey]

Da youth are being blamed by the WHO. The virus starts with 20-24 year having unprotected handshakes.

The risk is under 44 tend to be asymptomatic so probably arent getting tested. If there is a spike in cases many more are likely to be infected.

[Mpache]

The one nobody is talking about is Mexico. 45,000 deaths and now 6th in the World for most cases I believe.

South Africa also has it out of control too, and nobody is batting an eye.

[Harry]

Melbourne likely to go back into harder lockdown than it experienced in its first wave. 

Probably something similar to what countries with major outbreaks food the first time. Public transport to close. All businesses except grocery and pharmacy to close.

Will be a bitter pill to swallow tbh. 

[Stan]

Just seen the news about Victoria state  in Aus. What's the answers now then? Went in to lockdown and cases still went up. 

[Carnivore Chris]

• Greater Manchester:
  • City of Manchester
  • Trafford
  • Stockport
  • Oldham
  • Bury
  • Wigan
  • Bolton
  • Tameside
  • Rochdale
  • Salford
• Lancashire:
  • Blackburn with Darwen
  • Burnley
  • Hyndburn
  • Pendle
  • Rossendale

 

All these in the North West have some form of restrictions.

[Honey Honey]

51 minutes ago, Carnivore Chris said:

• Greater Manchester:
  • City of Manchester
  • Trafford
  • Stockport
  • Oldham
  • Bury
  • Wigan
  • Bolton
  • Tameside
  • Rochdale
  • Salford
• Lancashire:
  • Blackburn with Darwen
  • Burnley
  • Hyndburn
  • Pendle
  • Rossendale

 

All these in the North West have some form of restrictions.

Paul Scholes apparently breaking the rules this weekend throwing a massive party. Does he live on your street @DeadLinesman 

[DeadLinesman]

22 minutes ago, Harvsky said:

Paul Scholes apparently breaking the rules this weekend throwing a massive party. Does he live on your street @DeadLinesman 

What a cunt he is if that’s true.

[Harry]

5 hours ago, Stan said:

Just seen the news about Victoria state  in Aus. What's the answers now then? Went in to lockdown and cases still went up. 

That's where I live mate. Weve had layers of restrictions, and we were slowly easing out of the original restrictions, before reversing and going back in to stage 3 lockdowns, and today announced to be going to stage 4 lockdown. The stage 3 had significantly slowed growth in cases but after 3.5 weeks did not yet start trending downwards.That level of restrictions was being allowed to leave your house for only 4 reasons, and schools learning remotely except prep and final year of high school. One of the 4 reasons you could leave your house was work that could not reasonably done from home. That tend to mean low income manufacturing, aged care, abbatoirs, etc, and it is amongst that community where infections have not been contained by the restrictions.

The stage 4 restrictions skinned today looks worse than what we had the first time with daycare shut down and majority of those out of home employment (such as construction) shut down.

[Dr. Gonzo]

On 31/07/2020 at 09:33, Mpache said:

The one nobody is talking about is Mexico. 45,000 deaths and now 6th in the World for most cases I believe.

South Africa also has it out of control too, and nobody is batting an eye.

Mexico fucked up big time tbh, they responded too slow and didn’t take things seriously enough to impose restrictions early on. Story of pretty much most of the American countries other than Canada tbh. But Mexico’s inaction after seeing what was going on with their neighbors to the north and in Brazil... it makes it almost unforgivable.

In San Diego, which is right on the border, the communities most effected by the virus were/are the post codes literally right on the border.

There are also lots of people, both Americans and Mexicans, that live in Tijuana/Ensenada and work in the San Diego - because the pay is so much higher in the US, but housing is so much more affordable, so to them it’s worth the 2hr+ commute (although the fast-track card to get across the border helps cut that time significantly). I’m sure that’s the case with many other cities on the border that have a sister city literally right across the other side of the border.

Neither the US nor Mexico shut down the border (I think both sides were scared to further slow trade down in the face of an economic meltdown), or placed restrictions on border crossings. Mexico didn’t put restrictions on as many public gatherings or businesses until far too late, which meant you’d get Americans tired of being home for weeks/months driving down to Mexico so they could go to bars and shit like that and enjoy the fun they were missing out on.

When you’ve got lack of direction from the government (which both the US and Mexico have, just in different ways), you rely on people to be responsible enough to prevent outbreaks. Humanity’s history demonstrates that most people aren’t responsible at all.

But Mexico exploding with cases shouldn’t surprise anyone tbh. It’s a country that’s had decades of political instability and the home of the most violent scenes of the drug war. And it’s neighbor to the north is essentially the global equivalent of a rich methhead that also does steroids.

It’s never good to have a meth head as a neighbor, but it’s much worse to have a meth head neighbor that’s strong and rich enough to do whatever it wants. And they haven’t even got their own house in order from decades of instability. That’s why the country’s been such a mess for so long, and why a crisis like this will hit it so bad.

[Azeem]

There were no deaths or new cases here in some of the past few days, there is no logical explanation other than we have reached herd immunity but it's hard to say

[Dr. Gonzo]

21 minutes ago, Azeem said:

There were no deaths or new cases here in some of the past few days, there is no logical explanation other than we have reached herd immunity but it's hard to say

Herd immunity usually takes longer than just a few months though.

[MUFC]

7 hours ago, Carnivore Chris said:

• Greater Manchester:
  • City of Manchester
  • Trafford
  • Stockport
  • Oldham
  • Bury
  • Wigan
  • Bolton
  • Tameside
  • Rochdale
  • Salford
• Lancashire:
  • Blackburn with Darwen
  • Burnley
  • Hyndburn
  • Pendle
  • Rossendale

 

All these in the North West have some form of restrictions.

All the Asian areas then.

[Stan]

 

[The Artful Dodger]

19 hours ago, Harvsky said:

Paul Scholes apparently breaking the rules this weekend throwing a massive party. Does he live on your street @DeadLinesman 

Did anyone actually turn up? I can't imagine a Paul Scholes party being very exciting.

[Toinho]

22 hours ago, Harry said:

That's where I live mate. Weve had layers of restrictions, and we were slowly easing out of the original restrictions, before reversing and going back in to stage 3 lockdowns, and today announced to be going to stage 4 lockdown. The stage 3 had significantly slowed growth in cases but after 3.5 weeks did not yet start trending downwards.That level of restrictions was being allowed to leave your house for only 4 reasons, and schools learning remotely except prep and final year of high school. One of the 4 reasons you could leave your house was work that could not reasonably done from home. That tend to mean low income manufacturing, aged care, abbatoirs, etc, and it is amongst that community where infections have not been contained by the restrictions.

The stage 4 restrictions skinned today looks worse than what we had the first time with daycare shut down and majority of those out of home employment (such as construction) shut down.

You guys (and the rest of us) are fighting human selfishness. Victoria letting us all down, with security guards shagging people with COVID. 
 

We only have 6 active cases but our borders are basically shut and quarantine is mandatory (not that Victorians know what that means with 53% of people being tested for symptoms just roaming around).

A second wave is inevitable here as we can’t keep borders shut forever and, as we’ve seen, only takes a few to kick things off again. 

Edited August 3, 2020 by Toinho

[Carnivore Chris]

On 02/08/2020 at 19:46, MUFC said:

All the Asian areas then.

Whatever areas it is,local lockdowns make more sense. I always said that local lockdowns and limiting travel between cities made more sense than local lockdowns. It's taken them 6 months to come up with this.

For me it makes more sense because it doesn't have as big an impact on the economy while at the same time all focus can be on where it needs to be.

My city had barely any cases or a serious problem during the national lockdown. It never needed to be in lockdown. What it needed was stopping people coming in from other towns, as you'd expect that has as much chance of spreading a virus as moving between countries. 

Edited August 4, 2020 by Carnivore Chris

[Honey Honey]

2 hours ago, Carnivore Chris said:

Whatever areas it is,local lockdowns make more sense. I always said that local lockdowns and limiting travel between cities made more sense than local lockdowns. It's taken them 6 months to come up with this.

For me it makes more sense because it doesn't have as big an impact on the economy while at the same time all focus can be on where it needs to be.

My city had barely any cases or a serious problem during the national lockdown. It never needed to be in lockdown. What it needed was stopping people coming in from other towns, as you'd expect that has as much chance of spreading a virus as moving between countries. 

Local lockdowns didn't work months ago because testing wasn't readily available. They failed in both China and Italy. I also know someone who went to Spain at the time it was blowing up in Madrid and said it's fine the cases aren't where he's going. He caught COVID. Local lockdowns were one of the biggest failures of the early pandemic days. Your city might not have had many cases precisely because of lockdown. 

[Inverted]

I went into the middle of town today and had a sit-down lunch for the first time in 5 or 6 months. I enjoyed it, doing something so normal after so long.

But in hindsight it feels wrong, like everything has just went too much back to normal too quickly. People are mostly trying to distance, and wearing masks, but I just don't see how this leads anywhere but another spike. 

I certainly don't see us reaching elimination or near-elimination.

[Stan]

17 minutes ago, Inverted said:

I went into the middle of town today and had a sit-down lunch for the first time in 5 or 6 months. I enjoyed it, doing something so normal after so long.

But in hindsight it feels wrong, like everything has just went too much back to normal too quickly. People are mostly trying to distance, and wearing masks, but I just don't see how this leads anywhere but another spike. 

I certainly don't see us reaching elimination or near-elimination.

I'm hoping the vaccine will send us that way, sooner rather than later. There's been some positive news recently from those organisations who are creating vaccines - also just hope that UK has enough of them to go round to those who need it in the first instance and then longer-term thinking. No idea if Brexit will impact that?

The positive being if spikes are seen early enough, and local lockdowns are implemented quickly enough, it stops the spread going bigger. I think spikes are inevitable while the virus is still in circulation and if people continue to ignore social distancing. I must say I've been out for the past 2 weekends - Marlow and then Basingstoke/West London. For the places we've been to, social distancing has been maintained, people seem generally aware not to be part of crowds or less-socially-distanced queues or aisles in shops. We went to an Indian grocery shop and it surprised me how aware people were being about giving people space. I know it's only one shop but when it comes to Asian shops, you don't really expect it - most people (usually the older folk!) don't care for it and just want to do their thing. The other promising thing I saw was the mask-wearing. I genuinely don't recall seeing anyone without a mask while in a shop. They may have been wearing it the wrong-way round or below their nose (which is the dumbest thing sometimes!) but I'd rather that than nothing at all (they'll soon learn to wear it properly, I hope). 

I can't say things have gone back to normal to be honest - for me it's still a bit weird and precautionary whenever I go out. There's a sense of checking everyone else around you and now always trying to find space so that you're not to close to an individual or group of people. 

[Harry]

Is there a vaccine duration which you would be prepared to wait for, and one you would not?

For example if we knew now a vaccine was 3 years away rather than the more optimistic 1 or less would you reach a point of saying "I'll take my chances"?

 

 

[Harry]

 

[Eco]

This ruined my day...

Quote

In Pictures: Lonely burials for coronavirus victims in Iraq

Burial ground in Najaf created specifically for COVID-19 victims since such burials have been rejected at many places.

Every chapter of Iraq's modern history can be seen in the sprawling cemetery of Wadi al-Salam outside the holy city of Najaf. Its sandy expanse is growing, this time with coronavirus victims.

A special burial ground near the cemetery has been created specifically for COVID-19 victims because such burials have been rejected by Baghdad cemeteries and other places in Iraq.

In Iraq, the virus has been surrounded by stigma, driven by religious beliefs, customs and a deep mistrust of the healthcare system.

Iraq has recorded close to 132,000 coronavirus cases and nearly 5,000 deaths.

Overseeing the New Wadi al-Salam (or Valley of Peace) cemetery and helping with the burial procedures are Iraqi Shia volunteers from the Imam Ali Combat Division.

Corpses of the virus victims arrive at night in body bags driven by ambulances and burial procedures take place at daybreak.

In the past four months, more than 3,000 bodies have been buried here, said Sarmad Khalaf Ibrahim. He said the cemetery receives victims from all religions and is not limited to Muslims only.

"We had more than four or five [burials] of the Christian religion. They were buried with special ceremonies, appropriate and befitting them according to their request," Ibrahim said.

Iraq's centralised healthcare system, largely unchanged since the 1970s, has been worn down by decades of war, sanctions and prolonged unrest since the 2003 invasion by the United States.

The government hospitals in Baghdad are overwhelmed, barely able to handle the increasing numbers.

Najaf's Wadi al-Salam cemetery, 160km (99 miles) south of Baghdad, is believed to be one of the largest in the world and is the final resting place of choice for pious Shia Muslims because of its proximity to the shrine of Imam Ali, the much revered 7th-century founder of their sect.

It includes those killed in Iraq's long war in the 1980s with Iran, those slain in the sectarian bloodletting that followed the US-led invasion, as well as Shia fighters who fought ISIL (or ISIS) group in recent years.

Click if you want to see the pictures...

https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/inpictures/pictures-lonely-burials-coronavirus-victims-iraq-200804075951224.html

[Eco]

Got word last night from family that my Uncle and his family have it. Living with them is also my grandfather, grandmother, who are currently both suffering from a fever and are waiting on the results. 

My other uncle (his brother) and his wife and children are also being tested as they had all be staying quarantined together. 

[Stan]

22 minutes ago, Eco said:

Got word last night from family that my Uncle and his family have it. Living with them is also my grandfather, grandmother, who are currently both suffering from a fever and are waiting on the results. 

My other uncle (his brother) and his wife and children are also being tested as they had all be staying quarantined together. 

Best wishes to them mate.