Mass testing in Liverpool clearly worked.
SARS CoV-2 coronavirus / Covid-19 (No tin foil hat silliness please)
- Thread starter Don't Kill Bill
- Start date
Mass testing in Liverpool clearly worked.
We're going tier 4 from boxing day. Having been surrounded by tier 4 this does not surprise me, I've seen people saying people have been coming in from tier 4 areas as well, so much for stay in your area! However even though we go tier 4, we have 2 more days in tier 2, obviously the virus will wait for those 2 days...
I cannot fathom why people would go on holiday abroad at this time. Obviously if they have family in other countries maybe fair enough but those who have gone just because they "need" a holiday.... i couldn't take the financial hit of possibly getting stuck/ losing costs at the very least.
This new strain they've found from South Africa must be really scaring them, so there's 2 new strains, it was always going to mutate.
No doubt all those people "fleeing" London, packed on those train platforms are taking it back to lower tier areas with them.
The trouble is you get people who think they are immune/ the rules don't apply to them- OH parents have been round more than once, despite the fact we are tier 2 and you shouldn't be in other people's houses, plus he's also been over there. His brother also brags about how he's not wearing a mask on public transport, and would say he was exempt if asked (he's not.) Said brother lives with OH parents- his dad is in his 70s. The only time I have been round my parents so far was during the summer when they lifted lockdown. His brother is also one of those who believes the virus is a conspiracy theory...
I cannot fathom why people would go on holiday abroad at this time. Obviously if they have family in other countries maybe fair enough but those who have gone just because they "need" a holiday.... i couldn't take the financial hit of possibly getting stuck/ losing costs at the very least.
This new strain they've found from South Africa must be really scaring them, so there's 2 new strains, it was always going to mutate.
No doubt all those people "fleeing" London, packed on those train platforms are taking it back to lower tier areas with them.
The trouble is you get people who think they are immune/ the rules don't apply to them- OH parents have been round more than once, despite the fact we are tier 2 and you shouldn't be in other people's houses, plus he's also been over there. His brother also brags about how he's not wearing a mask on public transport, and would say he was exempt if asked (he's not.) Said brother lives with OH parents- his dad is in his 70s. The only time I have been round my parents so far was during the summer when they lifted lockdown. His brother is also one of those who believes the virus is a conspiracy theory...
First person I know personally who has had two positive tests - one today and one back in March.
Said it’s much worse this time around.
Said it’s much worse this time around.
Interesting. Completely shuts down my optimism! This is for the other variant though, right? The D614G was the dominant European strain but this new one hasn’t been properly named yet. Could be the exact same explanation though
Yeah they think 4 out of 1000 infections were reinfections from NERVTAG’s meeting last Friday. Not many but then most people haven’t been infected yet anyway. Not sure yet if it makes easier to get reinfected but no alarm bells yet .
The mutations from Kent and Durban were different to the thousands of others. We don’t report on them but we report on these because they are substantially different with observable effects
Liverpool is being used as a political tool to show how successful the governments mass testing was when in reality it wasn't
Any strain would of been spreading rapidly when they left London in tier 2 for so long only had to look at the Christmas shopping pictures, more to do with failure of government then any mutation, its a convenient excuse.
Any strain would of been spreading rapidly when they left London in tier 2 for so long only had to look at the Christmas shopping pictures, more to do with failure of government then any mutation, its a convenient excuse.
Maybe it's because I am biased as I have a need for borders to be open (not for having a jolly somewhere) - but I find it hard to understand why we are not having a more coordinated global approach to travelling (and the whole thing in general).
Maybe someone can explain why but I do not see why not having to do a PCR test before and after flying, followed by quarantine (institutional or self) - is not enough. Many other countries with low rates did it. Us, Europe and a few others which yo-yo'd never did that.
Hell, make people pay for the tests and quarantine themselves and reduce travel even more. That way you may only get the people who NEED to travel (those that cannot afford it can apply for an exemption or something)
The press don’t really have a choice but to report it if Government ministers are the ones saying it. They’re obviously trying to get people to be more compliant.
Were they asymptomatic back in March?
Not completely asymptomatic. But relatively mild
And another mutated version. The race between mutation and vaccine is truly on.
No wonder ireland keeps its borders locked from U.K.
Without doubt seasonal conditions played a role in the dramatic decline in infection rates from May onwards. The events you refer to in May, particularly VE Day appear to be mainly street parties with good level of social distancing thus depriving the virus the opportunity to infect. Again the mass gatherings on beaches didn't lead to any spike in infections. Again due to this happening in a vast open air areas. However it is important to note that due to the lockdown prior to these events there was probably far less of the virus in circulation anyway. When you factor in the far less risky activity there was never going to be a rapid spike. Pubs open for three weeks in July but with some degree of social distancing with many people choosing to sit outside. It's interesting that the dates in August you refer to, is when we start to see infections on the rise, slowly at first but consistent, setting in place a chain reaction that leaves us where we are now.
As you point out we can't control the climate and we know the virus thrives in a cold dry environment. The colder months also have an effect on social activity. The people sitting outside the pub on a balmy July evening are far less likely to do so on a chilly, wet and miserable October evening. We may have no control over the weather but we do have the ability to control the social interaction that the virus needs. Basically its food supply. More people die in the winter from seasonal flu and we do all we can with the flu vaccine. The current rate of death from seasonal flu is deemed acceptable. However we must not become complacent and just except this as another trend. Covid19 is not seasonal flu. It appears to be far more contagious, spread by asymptomatic infections, is more deadly and can cause severe long term health issues.
Don't like the sound of that.
That would still be catching it twice.
I've seen at least one other account where the second time infection has resulted in a far worse illness.
I'm just paranoid about Antibody-Dependent Enhancement and have been since this whole thing started.
I know two people who have had it twice. Once at the start in March and again recently. This is in South Africa, so no idea if it has anything to do with the variant.
A legitimate worry no doubt, but I couldn't handle worrying about another thing completely outside our control!
Do people worry about the new variant in South Africa? I know they've been talking about it since November but it sounded a bit academic at that point, and it handed filtered down to the population. And I do think people in rich countries do think about the problems differently. People in the UK say "why do I have to go to work when I can't see my friends?" while people in Turkey said "I don't care about the virus and all of the restrictions, I'll wear the mask and whatever else they're asking, I gotta work 'cause I gotta eat".
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Much more the Turkey approach.
Unfortunately our government is so broke (due to corruption) that closing the economy down will result in more deaths due to hunger for the poor.
Also, it’s a bit of a perfect storm. This time of the year is the prime holiday period for the wealthy as it’s the middle of summer. So the virus is just going to continue spreading. It’s looking really dire.
I haven't seen any studies that have found large numbers of reinfection (doesn't mean they don't exist though) but if one of those positive tests wasn't a false one that is a little worrying. It may point to waning immunity after 6 months, especially in the case of mild infections.
Another day another new policy 
I've been back in the UK 2 weeks and am about to enter a 6th new set of rules.
I'm waiting for Matt Hancock to throw his notepad on the floor and storm out, yelling feck it I give up you're all on your own.
I've been back in the UK 2 weeks and am about to enter a 6th new set of rules.I'm waiting for Matt Hancock to throw his notepad on the floor and storm out, yelling feck it I give up you're all on your own.
Bizarre it's not been systematically rolled out in key cities since then.
Also why are people traveling abroad at the moment? Granted some essential travel may be necessary.
So many selfish folk. All those people rushing out of London to lower tier places make my blood boil.
Anecdotally, there’s loads of examples of reinfection. Every hospital doc I know has at least one colleague who’s had it twice. Those numbers will get higher and higher in the coming months. I’m just hoping that a more severe dose, second time round, is very rare.
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Sounds like the mortality rate could be a lot higher with this one
You should be able to get back to Italy soon, hopefully. It's safer here now than in the UK.Another day another new policy
I'm waiting for Matt Hancock to throw his notepad on the floor and storm out, yelling feck it I give up you're all on your own.
Yes supposedly from today we can, with a negative test.
I'm giving a friend a lift home after Christmas, we all just want to get out of here now before it gets even worse.
It's crazy in my area in Kent we've gone from 6.6 in 100,000 towards the back end of September to 630 in 100,000 as of yesterday. With area's bordering all having higher rates of infection, including one of 940 per100,000. I genuinely don't see a quick end in site especially with the large numbers who commute from the worst affected area in large numbers for work and education around the county.
Very interesting, I had no idea it was so widespread.
You can never trust anecdotes and it’s possible that each “I know a guy” story is a very small number of cases becoming legendary in hospital small talk. It’s always been likely repeat infections would happen though. It’s been the case with common cold coronaviruses since forever.
This news about a second variant from South Africa sounds worrying. Somebody reassure me it’s not please.
There have been loads of different variants since the pandemic started. These recent ones have coincided with a period of explosive growth in case numbers. So the worry is that the virus has become more transmissible. But we have to bear in mind there might be other reasons for explosive growth this past month i.e. everyone losing their mind in the run up to Christmas, socialising and shopping like maniacs, just like they do every year.
Is that reassuring?
Vaccine when?
Fascinating hearing this guys perspective/experience.
“England’s COVID”
“England’s COVID”
You'll need to do the 14 days in quarantine too, unfortunately. The website thelocal.it has all the info, as ever - have you got your residency documents with you, by the way?
Looks like Ireland in the shit now, big time. Quickest rise in cases of anywhere in Europe. Barely 2 or 3 weeks after getting our 14 day incidence down to amongst the very lowest. Crazy how quickly this thing can get away from you, if you let your guard down even a tiny bit.
On a side note, this also torpedoes the “it’s the schools!” arguments. Schools have been open since September and the Irish caseload graph has gone up, come right down, then shot up again. All without any change in the behaviour of the kids at school.
@Brwned
*To be clear, cases came down before half term and this recent dramatic escalation only started several weeks after they came back. What we do have, however, is a very clear correlation with pubs/restaurants/offices/non-essential retail reopening after shutting them got the numbers right down.
On a side note, this also torpedoes the “it’s the schools!” arguments. Schools have been open since September and the Irish caseload graph has gone up, come right down, then shot up again. All without any change in the behaviour of the kids at school.
@Brwned
*To be clear, cases came down before half term and this recent dramatic escalation only started several weeks after they came back. What we do have, however, is a very clear correlation with pubs/restaurants/offices/non-essential retail reopening after shutting them got the numbers right down.
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That’s wild. I just had it in my mind things were all rosy down south and the Brits coming through the back door might create a bit of a problem. feck knows what happens now with that plus Christmas partying...
Have tested positive today. Got a fever that comes and goes but get's worse at night to the point of shivering, slight shortness of breath, rough throat and chest, occasional dry chesty cough, fatigued. Still got my sense of taste and smell though so gonna at least be able to enjoy food whilst isolating.
Could have been much worse!
Could have been much worse!