We are definitely on the slope of the curve. US cases are now over 3000 and have nearly doubled in the past two days and that is with extremely limited testing. I predict skyrocketing numbers of infections in the next two weeks. We were late to lock things down but I hope we stick to it before things get much worse.
Narrator: We haven’t locked things down.
Yep. That’s what all living things (and living-ish packets of nucleic acids) do–mutate and evolve. They are famous for it.
160,994 confirmed infections
5,973 dead
75,959 recovered
In the US:
3,045 confirmed infections
60 dead
56 recovered
There is now a known case in my County, in Tennessee.
Latest from the Netherlands 1135 cases and 20 dead.
Interestingly, one of the main health authorities released an estimate of around 6000 actually having (had) the bug.
That’s still less than 1 tenth of a percent of people…and if true, maybe a little reassuring regarding the death rate.
Verstuurd vanaf mijn moto g(6) met Tapatalk
Got word this afternoon that all persons returning to Beijing from overseas must spend their 14-day quarantine at a central isolation facility. Those currently in home quarantine must finish that term in the central facility. A friend in one of the southern provinces informed me today that he got the same word for his area for people returning from overseas. He has three days left on his quarantine and had to relocate.
Because not all vaccines consist of entire virus particles in suspension For instance subunit vaccines made from one part of a virus can lead to an effective antibody in situations where exposure to the entire virus leads to an ineffective antibody. The “shape” of the antibody can determine wether it is helpful or harmful to the organism.
Also, vaccines can contain adjuvants, that can stimulate antibody production.
We’ve been in contact with friends visiting St Martin/Sint Maarten. The country is no longer accepting air traffic from the US or Europe. No flights in means no return flights. Friends from the US who pushed their vacation stay there one day too long are now having difficulty finding a way home.
Since US airlines cannot land there, there are no flights out. The couple has potentially found a way to island hop until they eventually reach Puerto Rico, then possibly the US from there. Their usual $1000 direct flight is now going to be ten times that and span several days of boat and plane rides, if it even works.
Since my headache and cough has gotten worse and I’m starting to show signs of a fever I’m self-isolating now. The NHS website here says to self-isolate for 7 days. i.e. they are not testing people unless they need more urgent care.
It might be a cold but since I’m unlikely to be tested I may never know.
Yesterday I argued with my older sister why it would be crazy for her to fly to Mexico right now.
- What is she going to do if she gets down there and Mexico is added to the travel ban? Is she really going to be able to enjoy herself knowing that she’ll have some difficulty getting back home?
- What is she going to do if she gets severely sick while she’s down there?
- How is she going to feel if she spreads the virus to other people?
- She’s got loved ones back at home, including grown children who still depend on her. How is she going to feel if they fall ill while she’s down there? And instead of being able to get back to them ASAP, she’ll have to be quarantined if a ban is in place.
Mind you, this is a woman who travels for fun all the time (she works for an airline). So it’s not that this is a vacation she’s been playing all year. It’s just some spontaneous thing she wants to do.
She conceded that I made some good points, but I think she’s still going to go. She’s hard-headed and hyperactive and unable to deny her wants and desires. And it must be genetic since my parents haven’t stopped going to casinos.
I was talking to a doctor friend of mine yesterday, and he said testing was finally ramping up a bit Thursday and Friday. Because of this, he said to expect a big spike in cases Monday and Tuesday, and not to panic. It doesn’t mean things suddenly got worse. (I’m sure the media will provide context without any sensationalization.)
Shit. Be safe. Keep us updated.
NY Gov. Cuomo calls on National Guard to build emergency hospital beds, says US situation may become worse than Italy’s: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/15/opinion/andrew-cuomo-coronavirus-trump.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage
Me, still feeling sick, but not much worse. Yeah, maybe it is a cold, but I am lucky to not catch many bugs. I go whole years without calling in sick to work. The unique thing about this one is the cough- feels like gooey phlegm down low that doesn’t want to come up. I can see how that could turn into a breathing issue if it got bad enough, but so far for me it is just a hassle. Fiendish Astronaut, are you experiencing anything like that?
Well, some churches in my area ARE still holding services. I sing in an Episcopal choir, most of whose members are much older than I am (one lady is 94), and although I’ve chosen to drop out temporarily, I’m sure they’re all there singing right now, even as I write this. For some reason the Episcopal bishop has not seen fit to follow the lead of other religious leaders in the city. In fact, I emailed him yesterday and asked, “What are you waiting for?? Most congregants are elderly and will not stay home as long as services are being held.” So it WAS a legitimate question and didn’t need to be treated with snark as though it were stupid.
In Spain, the government has enacted a decree (within the context of the state of emergency) that contemplates fines for people who do not comply with the isolation rules (basically, going out of your home without a damn good reason related to either going to work or acquiring food/medicine/medical attention/walking your dog for 5 minutes in the immediate vicinity of your home). The only shops allowed to be open are supermarkets, restaurants that offer takeout (and only take out), providers of essential products or services (gas stations and such), pharmacies and hospitals.
The fines, depending on the risk to others presented by the actions of the quarantine-breaker, go from €100 to €600,000
And I think that they will be needed. Today I saw video (taken this Sunday morning from somebody’s window) of a bar in Gijón (Region of Asturias) that opened for business and had quite a few clients inside (!!!)
And when one person called out from their window to the owner to beg them to close, the owner shouted back basically saying “I do what I want, you are not the boss of me”.
Police were called and they arrived quickly.
I have the feeling that that bar’s owner will be one of the first proud recipients of one of those €600,000 fines (and the clients will very likely get one lower tier “prize” each).
Fucking. Morons.
I’ve been concerned about the number of people on Camino message boards and Facebook groups asserting they wouldn’t cancel their trip to Spain and not dissuaded by the consideration of staying in a pilgrim hostel with 200 people in bunk bed dorms. I haven’t looked yet to see how those folks are getting out of Spain, especially with Madrid as a hot spot.
I very much doubt that they will be able to do the pilgrimage in 2020.
Heck, even Seville cancelled their Holy Week celebrations! And this is a city where not even an ongoing civil war made them stop them!
So, no matter whether your friends really want to make the Camino… I don’t think they will be able to do so. Heck, I am not so sure that they will be able to even enter the country…!
Spain is closed. The moose out front should have told them.
This weighed in on my church’s debating whether to cancel services — the fact that, if services were held, that some people would feel compelled to go, even if they were frail / elderly / weak.
On Thursday we decided to cancel services. And I’m sleeping in!