Coronavirus Sars-CoV-2/Covid-19 Megathread

[Legbiter]

Now it's getting serious:

http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/worldNews/~3/je-S9cFfJ2M/cycling-uae-tour-canceled-after-positive-coronavirus-tests-idUSKCN20L333

Cycling: UAE Tour canceled after positive coronavirus tests

The final two stages of the UAE Tour, which is featuring some of the world's leading riders, has been canceled due to two Italian riders testing positive for coronavirus, the Abu Dhabi Sports Council said on Thursday.

What has been going on in Italy, apparently undetected until recently, as it seems to be the source for no end of European infections.

Just the beginning. Our definition of serious may have hardened considerably in 2 months' time hence. I don't think we have encountered something like this since the Spanish Flu.

[mongers]

Now it's getting serious:

http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/worldNews/~3/je-S9cFfJ2M/cycling-uae-tour-canceled-after-positive-coronavirus-tests-idUSKCN20L333

Cycling: UAE Tour canceled after positive coronavirus tests

The final two stages of the UAE Tour, which is featuring some of the world's leading riders, has been canceled due to two Italian riders testing positive for coronavirus, the Abu Dhabi Sports Council said on Thursday.

What has been going on in Italy, apparently undetected until recently, as it seems to be the source for no end of European infections.

Just the beginning. Our definition of serious may have hardened considerably in 2 months' time hence. I don't think we have encountered something like this since the Spanish Flu.

Oh I agree, something like that is a very real possibility.

Leggy, check out the first episode for the 1974-75 BBC tv series 'Survivors' for something rather over the top.

https://youtu.be/zAyjkaFYnzE

[jimmy olsen]

Spain will begin testing everybody that's been in a high-risk country in the past 2 weeks. I'm not sure we have the capability to do that? That must be thousands of people in the case of Italy.

Korea's been testing tens of thousands of people, so it's doable if the country is competent.

[jimmy olsen]

U.S. workers without protective gear assisted coronavirus evacuees, HHS whistleblower says

Officials at the Department of Health and Human Services sent more than a dozen workers to receive the first Americans evacuated from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, without proper training for infection control or appropriate protective gear, according to a whistleblower complaint.

The workers did not show symptoms of infection and were not tested for the virus, according to lawyers for the whistleblower, a senior HHS official based in Washington who oversees workers at the Administration for Children and Families, a unit within HHS.

The whistleblower is seeking federal protection, alleging she was unfairly and improperly reassigned after raising concerns about the safety of these workers to HHS officials, including those within the office of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar. She was told Feb. 19 that if she does not accept the new position in 15 days, which is March 5, she would be terminated.

The whistleblower has decades of experience in the field, received two HHS department awards from Azar last year and has received the highest performance evaluations, her lawyers said.
[...]

How nice.

And then someone living next to that airbase came down with the disease despite no history of overseas travel, how mysterious.

[crazy canuck]

Our tax dollars at work.  And leftists wonder why I'm against giving more power to the government.

No, I wonder why you think any government would be as incompetent as your current government.

[Sheilbh]

7,000 tested so far in the U.K. and I think we've been looking at South Korea, because the NHS are piloting drive through testing which I saw being done in Korea. They're also piloting home testing by nurses and paramedics for people who call 111 with symptoms.

It seems like they're trying to test lots of people without having big congregations at GPs or hospitals. Which makes sense to me.

Hopefully it'll ramp up and be enough.

[Razgovory]

This is moving from the territory of stuff I didn't take very seriously to something seems rather alarming.

[Syt]

For Vienna, the health inspector urges persons who feel they might be infected to call the central health telephone which will go through a number of question to determine if it's a likely case or not. If yes, a doctor will visit the person at home to do a diagnosis. The idea being that potential carriers don't spend hours in hospital or doctor waiting rooms with other people.

[Maladict]

First case in the Netherlands.

And he's been partying all over the place during carnival. We're fucked 

[Syt]

So far number of infections in Vienna sits at 3. Medical chamber says they had 1500 calls, with about 4 potential cases.

[Syt]

Gonna go do my weekend shopping now. Let's hope the supermarket is still well stocked.

[Syt]

Supermarket was fully stocked and people are doing their usual shopping. No panic buying yet.

[Tamas]

My friend just reported that the supermarket they frequent is out of flour. People are stockpiling it for whatever reason. I don't think most of them would be able to bake bread.

And this is without a single confirmed case in the country. I expect looting and murders after half a dozen cases.

[Sheilbh]

So UK total is now 19 - a couple linked to Iran in London as well as cases in Northern Ireland and Wales.

[Syt]

I think Viennese tend to be a bit jaded. "Chance of deadly plague if I'm in crowds of people? Screw it, I'll still take the subway to work during rush hour!"