Coronavirus Special Coverage

A collection of news posted throughout the week for those that want signal, not noise.

  • Previous coverage - all of our posts in this ongoing series.
  • Coronavirus status page - learn how to prepare for possible spread to your area. Scenarios, shopping lists, background info and everything else you need, all in one place.

COVID-19: key developments for Friday, April 3, 2020

9 Comments on COVID-19: key developments for Friday, April 3, 2020

The US leads the world in cases, with over 30,000 added since yesterday for a total of more than 276,000.  The US has had more than 1,300 deaths since yesterday. NY has more than 100,000 cases and is adding almost 10,000 cases per day. New York may overtake some European countries in total number of cases soon. If things continue this way the US will be the new epicenter of the global pandemic. More interesting stats:

The State Department continues to warn US citizens abroad who wish to return to travel home now, before it’s too late:

The Acting Secretary of the Navy makes a well thought-out statement on the rationale for Captain Crozier’s removal. The Secretary of the Navy also recognized Crozier’s love for his sailors, which is touching no matter where you stand on the issue. Here’s of video of Crozier leaving the carrier. Remember, readers, that this is a picture of other folks’ feelings about it, not necessarily that of the blog/writers:

https://twitter.com/AmberSmithUSA/status/1246052144115077120?s=20

A city in Ecuador is not doing too well, by the look of things.

5% of Rikers Island inmates are now infected. The rate of infections/1000 people is also rising very quickly in this population. Will the prison be forced to release inmates to stop the spread?

Beware of fake Chinese masks. They’re coming through organized crime pipelines. Properly produced KN95s may become FDA approved if inspected and found authentic. Buyer beware!

We’ve warned that social distancing measures will have to last quite a long time to work. Many Americans are underestimating how long this will last. Flattening the curve means drawing the curve out over time—we may not see a peak until May or June, and double peaks are possible if people try to return to normal too soon. The end of April is certainly not a time frame to be aiming for.

To illustrate the point about resurgence, see Singapore:

NBC Now shares some eye-opening videos and statistics:

The CDC says it’s time to wear masks in public. And nobody can find any. Here’s our compilation of recs on making your own.

Stephanie Arnold | cosmicpixle

Stephanie Arnold is an advanced practice psychiatric nurse and a doctoral candidate in UA Tuscaloosa’s DNP program. Stephanie moonlights from time to time at UCLA teaching mental health nursing. She also likes making cold-process soap.

  • 9 Comments
    • P B April 4, 2020

      Social breakdown is around the corner.

      A few situations:

      Q: What do you do when you don’t have what you need and the govt cant provide it for you and almost seems reluctant to do so?

      A: The animals inside us come out. This is not the financial crisis. The wealthiest are feeling this crunch. The charitable donations will come to a halt and no private sector help coupled with govt inadequacy leads people to provide for themselves any way possible.

      Q: If the prisons are empty and the police force and military are getting sick who is left to maintain order?

      A: If martial law/national guard control etc is enacted; this is not a good thing. The armed men at your neighborhood intersections will not be answering house calls when you call 911 as someone in your neighbourhood is attacking you. They exist to keep you inside certain boundaries. They may not be the most moral of individuals themselves.

      Like the point of this domain states; you’re either the prepared or you aren’t. Just remember if you are prepared; you’re also a target. You have what everyone needs.

      4 |
    • Jan Ferrara Foselli April 4, 2020

      So more people in my state, Florida, have died from the regular flu than Covid.  What’s the big deal?  The same population (sr. citizens, diabetics, compromised health problems) are just as susceptible to the flu as Covid.  Why are we having these crazy rules now?  I don’t get it.  But I do enjoy your site – learning lots!

      -3 |
      • Stephanie ArnoldContributor Jan Ferrara Foselli April 4, 2020

        The flu kills .1% of those infected. SARS-CoV-2 kills 2-4% (20-40 times more lethal than flu). We have a vaccine for flu. There is no treatment for the pandemic virus. Many have innate immunity from flu from previous infection. We have no innate or herd immunity to the pandemic virus. The pandemic virus overwhelms hospitals very quickly–20% of those infected need ICU care. When the hospitals get overwhelmed the sick are pushed back into the community. Folks needing routine treatment (chemotherapy, for example) can’t get it. Take a look at what happened to the hospitals in Italy and then you’ll get an idea of what is coming. This is just starting for us.

        12 |
      • SeaBee Jan Ferrara Foselli April 5, 2020

        Welcome to this site, Jan, it’s amazingly run and a phenomenal resource. The entire Prepared crew has invested countless hours keeping us well-informed and up to date. This is the first site I check each morning.

        I live in Brooklyn, New York and I can tell you this is very, very real. Many friends and neighbors are first responders, HCW, and LEO. The collapse of our municipal healthcare infrastructure is absolutely possible. This is real, and I encourage anyone reading this from as-yet not hot spots in the US to take it seriously and help your family and neighbors adjust behaviors and expectations now.

        If you are unclear about the reality and threat of COVID, I recommend starting back in the blog at the beginning of February and reading forward from there. Even just skimming the curated articles will help give you a deeper understanding of what’s going on and, frankly, why many of us are looking at our country’s response with utter shock and dismay.

        Stay safe and stay informed from reputable sources. This site is one of the best, and I hope you keep coming back.

        7 |
      • John AdamaStaff SeaBee April 5, 2020

        @SeaBee So kind of you to say, thank you 🙂 We’re doing our best to grow the resources and help!

        5 |
      • John AdamaStaff Jan Ferrara Foselli April 5, 2020

        Gave you an upvote, Jan, because it seems like you asked a sincere question and are open to changing your mind, instead of thoughtlessly promoting dangerous fake news.

        There’s been a million words written in the last few weeks about why this is not the same as the flu (regardless of what some political leaders said). Stephanie’s answer is correct.

        The short answer: Covid kills 20-40X more people than the seasonal flu and is pretty contagious. Left unchecked, half a million Americans or more would’ve died. Particularly the most vulnerable of us.

        These rules aren’t crazy. There’s room for rational debate about how things could’ve gone (much) better in the early days — and it can seem crazy in contrast that we aren’t reacting as strongly to other problems of a similar scale.

        There’s also the second-order effects of letting a Big Burn happen unchecked (ie. the virus spreading and killing as it wants to). A big example is an overwhelmed healthcare system. Which not only affects the people with Covid, but everyone else who needs to use the healthcare system too.

        Sounds like you need to upgrade the sources you listen to for this kind of news. Glad you’re enjoying the site and hope you stick around!

        – John, founder

        9 |

      • Thanks, John!  I am devouring the info on this site.  Living in FL for over 30 years, we have experienced the dreaded hurricanes of ’04 with a direct hit to our county.  We learned pretty quick what happens when you aren’t prepared and my husband witnessed first hand the chaos that ensues when the local grocery store brings milk out of the stock room and gets swarmed before he can even wheel the cart to the milk section of the store.  We vowed then to get prepared for hurricanes which we do each season.  Now that this pandemic is going on, it’s changing our thinking again.  Thank you for this site and for the info provided.

        Thank you to each respondent for further educating me on the seriousness of this flu.  I’ve been sent home to work and will gladly stay in our little fortress.  And, will continue to learn how to be better prepared.

        8 |