We interviewed four Italians about what life is like in Northern Italy, with the coronavirus filling up hospitals and the entire country on lockdown. The idea was to get a possible glimpse of what’s in store for us in the coming weeks, as the case counts rise and our own healthcare system approaches the tipping point.
Two of our interviewees are parents, and one is police highway officer (not the normal police). Apart from the highway officer, who’s out on patrol, our interviewees are all staying at home. One of them is still going out grocery shopping as usual, while another is bringing groceries to their parents. One of our interviewees has to go to the office part time, where it’s mandatory that they wear masks, and they must sanitize their hands every 20 min and open the windows every hour.
The interviews were conducted in Italian, a language I’m a native speaker of, so I’ve translated and summarized the answers.
The one phrase that struck me most in all of these conversations is: “it’s like a state of war in times of peace.” You’ll see what this means, below.
If you had a time machine to one month ago, what’s the one thing you would do differently to prepare?
Unexpectedly, all of them said that they would not have done anything differently because there’s no way you can get ready for this. I even tried to rephrase the question — same answers. They mostly changed the subject to the government, saying it should have moved more quickly (although they think that at least they are doing the right thing now). Some said, “do not panic.””
Another said that you should prepare psychologically because you’ll face a lot of “ignorance, indifference and stupidity. When everything is over I will have less social contacts, people have shown their real face. ”
Another pointed out that “alone you don’t fight an epidemic, only when everyone follows rules you can fight it.”
Are you still able to get everything you need in life, except for perhaps going out for entertainment?
Everyone said that supply levels are fine, and apart from hand sanitizer and face masks they have everything they need. Of course, it’s the disruption to social life that is weird. Most of them are welcoming the introversion — the kids are taking it as a holiday. Families are still going out to the park, they just keep away from people.
They report that Italians are seen queuing at groceries stores, not because there’s a shortage of anything, but so they can maintain a safe distance from each other. In describing this, one of them said that it’s like “a sort of state of war, during peace”.
What’s the general mood and vibe? Some people are scared, some aren’t, and so on, but would you say people are really freaking out, or?
Everyone said that the mood is ok. Some take it as it is, some are worried about the virus, some are worried about money/work/the economy. Some are stupid and don’t follow rules, etc. But no one said anything about people losing their minds (apart from the jail situation, mentioned below).
Q&A with an Italian police officer
What is the public order like?
As he is a highway patrol, he hasn’t noticed anything different for now. He’s noticed a lower amount of private vehicles, only trucks with essential supplies. But he said that there have been problems with riots in the jails.
What are the things you worry about as a police officer with this pandemic?
He’s not worried, and his colleagues are taking things as they are: they get their job done and that’s all that matters to them.
Has your job changed in any way?
From tomorrow they will start stopping vehicles and checking them to make sure people are only going to work or it’s necessary travel. People will have to show papers that justify their travel, and the police will check them and make sure they’re valid.
Are you getting training about pandemics, are they handing out special gear, etc?
They have just been given masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer.
