Covid-19 in China

[Randy W]

from Radio Television Hong Kong or RTHK public TV

 

 

Wuhan people need 'gratitude education': official

 

 

 

A senior Communist Party official has called for the people of Coronavirus-hit Wuhan to be given "gratitude education".

Wang Zhonglin, the party secretary of the city at the epicentre of the mainland's Covid-19 outbreak, said Wuhan residents should work with the authorities to form "positive energy".

To achieve this, he said, party officials should carry out various forms of publicity and activities, including "gratitude education".

 

 

 

 

from the SCMP - Hooda thunk?

 

Coronavirus: plan to teach Wuhan people to be grateful backfires

• Proposal to mount a ‘gratitude education campaign’ prompts furious backlash from people at the centre of the Covid-19 outbreak

• Party leaders shift focus on praise for city’s sacrifice after suggestion they should be grateful to Xi Jinping prompts torrent of criticism on social media

[Greg.D.]

But it seemed like such a good idea back in the echo chamber!

 

if you have to educate people to be grateful maybe "it's too soon" .... or something.

[Randy W]

from the SCMP on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/355665009819/posts/10158102147559820/

Wuhan: Before and After the Lockdown

Before the lockdown, Wuhan was a vibrant industrial and transport hub of 11 million people. Today, it's the epicentre of a global coronavirus epidemic.

Edited June 8, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

Quarantine for International travelers into Beijing

The policy will take effect midnight

https://www.facebook.com/2358098751081249/posts/3304081526482962/

&

Edited June 8, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

Guangxi Epidemic Prevention Command Farmers Market should strengthen facilities cleaning and cleaning disinfection, correctand and effectively set up anti-rat, fly- and anti-pollution facilities, killing "four harms". The illegal wildlife trade is completely prohibited and punished.

 

[Randy W]

Quarantine for International travelers into Beijing

 

 

https://www.facebook.com/2358098751081249/posts/3304081526482962/

 

 

 

 

from the SCMP

 

It would would seem that connections through Beijing are not affected, although the article doesn't say specifically.

 

Coronavirus: Chinese capital says all international visitors must agree to 14-day self-quarantine

 

• Owner of Beijing-based tour company fears for business, saying ‘Everyone is scared. No one knows how long it is going to last’.

 

• President of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China says measures amount to a ‘de facto travel ban’

 

Short-stay travellers must lodge in designated hotels and will not be allowed to leave without first being tested for infection,

 

 

 

[Randy W]

This might be the most scenic coronavirus quarantine facility yet. The Maldives built this resort in just 10 days.

Maldives resort coronavirus quarantine facility - from the SCMP

Quote

This might be the most scenic coronavirus quarantine facility yet. The Maldives built this resort in just 10 days.

 

Our latest coverage on the epidemic:

https://sc.mp/coronavirusoutbreak

https://www.facebook.com/355665009819/posts/10158105692334820/

Edited June 8, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

from the SCMP

 

 

Chinese studies link quarantines with coronavirus mutations that may make it more ‘insidious’

 

 

• Wuhan doctors find initial symptoms were more prominent in patients seen before January 23 lockdown, and drastic measures may have made it more ‘insidious’, while separate research identifies two competing strains.

Clinical researchers in Wuhan, where the new virus strain first emerged in December, say that locking down millions of people may have caused mutations in the genetic make-up of the coronavirus that resulted in milder symptoms of the pneumonia-like illness, or no initial symptoms at all in the early stage of infection.

 

“We found that the initial clinical characteristics of patients admitted after January 23 began to differ from those of patients admitted before, which brought new diagnostic challenges,” the doctors said in a paper submitted on March 2 to SSRN, a website run by The Lancet for research that has not yet been published.

 

“Some common systemic symptoms of Covid-19 such as fever, fatigue, phlegm and muscle pain were more prominent in patients admitted before January 23, but more insidious in later patients.”

 

 

 

 

[Randy W]

From the SCMP - just to clarify

 

 

Coronavirus is now classified as a pandemic

 

 

 

The designation is not a reflection of its severity, but rather that the outbreak is spreading widely across the globe – in contrast with an epidemic, which means an outbreak is spreading within a specific community.

 

The WHO is “deeply concerned, both by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction” by world leaders in response to the outbreak, Tedros said. “We have therefore made the assessment that Covid-19 can be characterised as a pandemic.”

 

However, he said WHO officials believe it is possible that the pandemic could be contained, and urged countries to take immediate action.

 

By calling it a pandemic, the WHO is communicating that the illness is spreading unchecked. Though the designation may seem obvious after the rapid increase in cases, it is significant because it can enable different countries to implement emergency measures like travel and trade restrictions, and to activate preparedness plans to prevent the further spread of the virus.

 

The designation places Covid-19 in a different category to other recent outbreaks like Ebola or Zika, which were considered international emergencies.

 

Officials at the UN agency reiterated that the designation should not cause people to panic – it is merely meant to enable governments to better respond, not to indicate the illness is extremely severe.

 

 

[Randy W]

I wouldn't exactly call this the "opposite", but - well, read on.

From the SCMP

 

South Korea’s coronavirus response is the opposite of China and Italy – and it’s working

 

Seoul’s handling of the outbreak emphasises transparency and relies heavily on public cooperation in place of hardline measures such as lockdowns.

 

Whereas China, where the virus originated, and more recently Italy have placed millions of their citizens on lockdown, South Korea has not restricted people’s movements – not even in Daegu, the southeastern city at the centre of the country’s outbreak.

 

Instead, authorities have focused mandatory quarantine on infected patients and those with whom they have come into close contact, while advising the public to stay indoors, avoid public events, wear masks and practise good hygiene.

 

And while numerous countries have imposed sweeping travel bans – including the US, which has introduced dramatic restrictions on travel from Europe – Seoul has instead introduced “special immigration procedures” for heavily affected countries such as China, requiring travellers to undergo temperature checks, provide verified contact information and fill out health questionnaires.

 

[Randy W]

 

All places with a major coronavirus outbreak are located along a corridor with a similar climate.

 

China's pollution, before and during the lockdown

 

[Randy W]

It's all in the testing - from the SCMP

 

When coronavirus numbers don’t paint a big pandemic picture

Egypt appears to have very few cases of Covid-19 while South Korea and Italy have thousands

But one expert warns that Africa could be the disease’s next hotspot, despite the low reported caseload

The difference, according to experts, is testing.

“Other countries might have more infections than South Korea but less confirmed cases, because they have done fewer tests.”

. . .

South Korea has been praised for its mass screening, testing 248,647 people as of Thursday, or 4,831 per million people in the country. This rate is far higher than other countries that have released data on testing.

Italy’s rate was 1,422 per million people, Japan’s was 81 and the US’ was at 42, according to data from health departments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Randy W]

The story of how the coronavirus story unfolded - from the WaPo. First reported here on Jan. 2 - see first post in this topic http://candleforlove.com/forums/topic/50020-wuhan-pnuemonia-becomes-covid-19

 

Hopefully you'll have free access. If not, try Googling it.

 

 

How a blogger in Florida put out an early warning about the coronavirus crisis

 

 

 

The news seemed so intriguing — and so potentially alarming — that Sharon Sanders stayed up almost until dawn on Dec. 31 to keep track of it.

 

From her home in Winter Haven, Fla., Sanders began compiling reports of public comments by health officials in China’s Hubei province. The officials, Sanders reported on her blog, FluTrackers, had announced an outbreak of an unusual cluster of pneumonia cases, caused by a mysterious virus.

 

The New York Times on Jan. 6 took note of a “pneumonia-like illness” that had sickened 59 people in Wuhan; two days later, The Washington Post, the Times and AP published staff stories about the outbreak after Chinese researchers determined that the illnesses in Wuhan — later dubbed covid-19 by the World Health Organization (WHO) — were the result of a previously unknown coronavirus. Even so, the story wasn’t big news. That first Times story was published on page 13 of its print edition; the Post put its first story on A14.

The story didn’t fully enter mainstream discussion in the United States until later in the month.

 

 

 

 

[Randy W]

 

 

from the SCMP

 

It would would seem that connections through Beijing are not affected, although the article doesn't say specifically.

 

Coronavirus: Chinese capital says all international visitors must agree to 14-day self-quarantine

 

• Owner of Beijing-based tour company fears for business, saying ‘Everyone is scared. No one knows how long it is going to last’.

 

• President of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China says measures amount to a ‘de facto travel ban’

 

Short-stay travellers must lodge in designated hotels and will not be allowed to leave without first being tested for infection,

 

 

 

 

 

Revised - now you need to pay for it, although it's unclear if this is only for air passengers through the BCIA - from the SCMP

 

 

International travellers to Beijing to pay for 14 days of quarantine

Incoming passengers to cover the cost of two weeks of monitoring in a designated facility, according to media reports

Number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 continues to fall but China on the lookout for imported infections

State broadcaster CCTV reported: “From now on, all inbound flights will stop at the T3-D processing area at Beijing Capital International Airport for ... screening and scientific treatment.”

 

 

 

. . . and CGTN

 

 

[Randy W]

STEP email alert

 

Health Alert U.S. Embassy Beijing, People's Republic of China (March 17, 2020)

 

 

Event: There is an ongoing outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) first identified in Wuhan, China. The global public health threat posed by COVID-19 is high, with more than 80,000 reported cases worldwide. 

The government of PRC has implemented enhanced screening and quarantine measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Travelers should be prepared for travel restrictions to be put into effect with little or no advance notice.

State/local government actions: Effective immediately, most major metropolitan areas in China will require travelers entering China from nearly all foreign destinations, including the United States, to undergo screening for COVID-19 and perform 14 days of monitored quarantine, either in their residence or in a Chinese facility, with the quarantine location determined based on their risk of COVID-19 infection. In some locations, travelers may be expected to pay for their accommodations while undergoing quarantine. Travelers may not have control over the amenities offered at quarantine locations. These quarantine measures are not consistent across China and submitting to them is mandatory. U.S. citizens may also be required to install and use location tracking software on their phones in order to access public spaces and some businesses. Some private hospitals may refuse admittance to travelers who have been in the United States 14 days prior to entering China.