Just saw the French figures

[Suff]

1,120 new deaths today. A bit grim. We have a lot of French friends who are smack in the danger group from our Twinning committee.

So far, as far as I can determine, our little town doesn't have the virus. Everyone is being sensible and things are progressing more or less normally.

But this has made no impact on the number of people dying. We know that the cities are already close to being overwhelmed, that there are many old an vulnerable dying.

It really doesn't matter how organised you are, once the virus goes over 10,000 cases without lockdown, Armageddon has already arrived.

We also have to wonder about just who was infected when. Mrs S was extremely unwell for the whole of February, she had a pretty bad dry cough, serious headaches, was so ill that she struggled to get up and down the stairs and was breathing hard at the time. Today she tells me that she also had no sense of taste or smell.

Very odd. She was, effectively, isolated for the whole time and had a friend drop shopping into the house via the front door and picked it up after the friend was gone.

It leaves me wondering whether we really know just how many people have been infected and have weathered the virus without knowing at all. Theoretically we could have her tested for antibodies, but not right now.

[cromwell]

It's bad everywhere really. The USA, France, Spain, Italy, UK.
We had a bad cough that wouldn't go away in January but I don't think it was Covid 19.
The media over here is awful. Everything is the Government's fault. Why don't they have a magic pill to cure everything? The headlines scream every day.
Because this virus was unknown to the world four months since.
The UK was not prepared for a pandemic, no. But can you imagine the reaction of that same media if any government had spent billions preparing for a pandemic that never arrived?
One thing it has shown is that we must prepare for the next one, and part of that preparation has to be to ensure that we have the manufacturing capacity in house to produce vital medical materials. Protective equipment especially. Even if that capacity is mothballed it has to be there.

[Suff]

If Mrs S had a fever, persistent cough, blinding headache, plus a loss of the sense of taste and smell, today, she'd be tested immediately.

Interesting the difference 4 - 6 weeks makes.

Interesting fact is that, in the 33 years we have been together, she has never caught a virus I have had and I have never caught a virus she has had.

[Workingman]

The UK officially went through the 9,000 barrier today. The media, bless them, are trying to keep it quiet by only headlining the numbers for England (8,114) whilst only mentioning the 495 in Scotland, the 315 in Wales and the 92 in NI some way down the page and not giving a UK total.

They still have not explained the 'missing' numbers that were quietly removed because the victims did not die in hospital. That figure varies between 132 and 141 depending on which ones are looked at, but it could be more.

[Workingman]

And now another 58 have gone missing! Add the numbers up for Eng, Sco, Wa and NI, which are 8114+495+315+92 and you get 9,016.

The 'revised' published figure? 8.958. It looks like we are being fed porkies.

There is a fine line between telling the truth and fear mongering, but with all that has been going on regarding social distancing and parks etc. and the need for us to follow the rules this Easter weekend surely the best thing to do is to give us the full figures and, yes, scare us a bit.

[Suff]

Yes, they like to get creative don't they. Hence why I do not rely on the press for figures.

Whilst there should be no fear mongering, the unvarnished figures should always be given.

[medsec222]

Totally agree. The public expect no less than complete honesty but will we get it. We were being told daily that the supply of PPE equipment for the front line staff was in hand, and although many of the front line staff do now appear to be getting PPE, just tonight we were told there are 'transport problems'. Of note I think there have been 14 deaths amongst the transport workers, 5 bus drivers in the London area. What protection have they been given. They are handling money all the time and as far as I am aware there is no screen between passenger and driver.

[Kaz]

There are now screens on the London buses, not sure about elsewhere.

[TheOstrich]

London buses don't accept cash, it's either Oyster or contactless. The unions have objected to passengers boarding at the front doors or sitting in the front downstairs seats as far as I can glean. TfL are taking steps to deal with this.

Outside London, it's a wholly different matter.

[Workingman]

Following a spate of cash box thefts way back all our buses have had plexiglass screens for years and they have a grille so that two-way conversations can be had. What protection they offer against droplets is a bit of a guess. Most tickets are purchased via card, pass, tap and pay or phone app with very few cash payments nowadays. All our buses are front loaders.