In the past week, the coronavirus has shown that it is not slowing down in the least bit. Even with the countless warnings to wash hands and practice social distancing, the number of infected people in the United States is rising exponentially. Before I discuss the recent developments of coronavirus I would once again urge everyone to do what they can to prevent the spread of the virus. Practicing the safety measures given out by the government is imperative if we are going to limit the amount of damage this virus can do. Staying home rather than going to hang out with friends or be in public is a small sacrifice that we will all have to make. It simply is not worth the risk.
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As of now, there are at least 52,976 cases of the novel coronavirus in the United States and 704 people have died. There have already been 163 deaths reported today, according to a tally by CNN, making this the deadliest day in the US since the coronavirus pandemic began. This number of cases, however, is most likely very inaccurate. Experts predict that there are many times more cases in the United States than reported. This is due to struggles and delays in testing, people who have not shown symptoms yet, people that choose not to get tested, and many other factors. This is dangerous, as many people are not aware of actually how quickly the novel coronavirus is spreading and how close it may be to them. While the tragedies taking place in Europe and Asia seem far away, the US may not be that far behind. Some estimates say that the United States may be as close as a week behind Italy in terms of days of the pandemic. This means that it is a possibility of the United States having the same severity of the COVID-19 outbreak as Italy if measures aren’t taken to prevent it.
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The governor of Pennsylvania, Tom Wolf, recent issued “Stay at home” orders to Allegheny, Philadelphia, Chester, Delaware, Monroe, Montgomery, and Bucks counties. This encourages people to stay at home unless someone’s life depends on it. All businesses that are not life sustaining are now closed. In addition to this, all schools remain closed, and wouldn’t be expected to open for a significant amount of time. Students now must participate in online learning, where teachers and professors give their lessons online, so students can participate from home.
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In positive news, after taking measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus, China has gone a week with no new reported domestic cases of coronavirus. While they are still reporting some cases, this is as a result of people that are traveling into the country that are already infected with the virus. This shows that if steps are taken and recommendations are followed, the spread can be slowed and stopped.
Unfortunately, this does not appear to be in the near future for the United States. It will most likely get worse before it gets better. The only thing everyone can do now is avoid contact with others whenever possible and try to wash your hands whenever you get the chance.
I live in Allegheny County, which is one of the counties that you mentioned as being under the “Stay At Home” order. Other than running/walking outside to get some fresh air and exercise, I have not been anywhere, and from what I’ve heard, most people are in the same boat except for going to the grocery store. With this order, one thing I have noticed is that people are increasingly embracing the simple pleasure of walking outside. I have never seen so many walking through my neighborhood before, but now everybody is…spread throughout the sidewalks and street to keep their distance from each other.
Ever since the “Stay At Home” order passed I’ve seen significantly fewer cars on the roads when I go for runs which is great to see. Before I would still see large amounts of traffic for the situation we were in and in infuriated me as people were not taking this pandemic seriously. It’s important we stay committed to social distancing and get passed this correctly.
The “Stay At Home” was definitely the right thing to do. With that being said, it is definitely frustrating not being able to hang out with friends the way I’m used to when I’m home.
My county has not listed under the “Stay At Home” policy yet, but I can foresee it. If we ever leave to get groceries, I notice that there’s almost no one on the road. Most people are already embracing staying at home.