Coronavirus

[Tredman]

From the Stay European weekly mail. Very grim:

In Madrid, it is not just hospitals that are on the verge of collapse. The funeral homes have no space or resources to continue collecting the dead, so now the Palacio de Hielo – the huge 'Ice Palace' ice rink – is becoming the capital's morgue.

Workers like cashiers and cleaners continue to work without protection. Information phone lines on coronavirus are saturated. The army has found elderly people's corpses in the rooms of their homes.

The only relief comes at 8pm, when the people clap from their balconies for health workers. And the only good news is about hospital discharges: 2,063 have now recovered from the virus.

In Spain, Madrid is suffering the worst from the pandemic. This Monday it reached 10,000 cases - a third of the cases in the country - with almost 1,000 admitted to intensive care. 1,263 have died in Madrid, 242 of them just yesterday...

Hospitals are entering their third week of saturation, and some of collapse. The biggest shortage is now in ICU beds and respirators, which are scarce, with more arriving little by little. Over the past week, many hospitals' A&E departments have doubled their capacity, but it is not enough.

Now, days behind in picking up dead bodies from homes and hospitals, funeral directors will stop collecting the deceased today, in dramatic news given by the Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida. The solution found has been to turn the Ice Palace into "the great morgue": the 1,800 square metre ice rink will begin collecting bodies tonight.

Translated and abridged from a report by Beatriz Asua

 

[Sniffer]

London’s ExCeL centre is being converted into an emergency hospital.

 

[Tredman]

Good to see the west mids is taking it seriously:

A West Midlands police force has had to deal with a large group of at least 20 people having an outdoor barbecue, less than 24 hours after the prime minister placed the country in lockdown.

In a tweet, Foleshill police wrote:

Unbelievably, we’ve just had to deal with 20+ people having a BBQ!! Please listen to government advice else this will get worse and will last longer!!

 

[Sniffer]

Matt Hancock in the house of commons.

"To be clear - where people can not work from home, they can still go to work. Indeed its important that they do to keep the country running."

Further guidance to be given later today regarding what Employers must do to keep employees safe.

 

[Newbridge Wolf]

We are on an appointment only basis for entering the office, having to phone up the office manager to gain access.

 

[Sniffer]

Help for Darlo?


Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP
✔
@grantshapps
To ensure those who absolutely-need-to-travel are able to safely I’m requesting the rail industry ask retired staff including signallers to assist in this great national effort to beat #coronavirusuk.

 

[Dublin Drummer Wolf]

Taoiseach talking to the Nation now.

Increased payments for people made redundant to be paid out this week.

All Private hospitals will now be considered as public hospitals and will treat people on public waiting lists with out any charge.

Excellent news. Just need the public to play ball now.

 

[lemonjelly]

based purely on random glances out the window through today, surely there are too many people out and about to be working/shopping/exercising? Admittedly I'm on a major route (dual carriageway indeed) but how are there so many people out there?

 

[The Bear]

On the drive home I saw several people out walking with kids or with shopping bags.

Seems fair enough to me based on the PM's wishy washy advice.

 

[Paul]

Squeeze has received her notification from the NMC that she is going back into the NHS. Just got to see where she gets placed I guess.

My wifes cousin is a Professor of Nursing, really high up position, consulting with the government etc has just been sent to be retrained to go back 'on the shopfloor'

 

[darlowolf64]

Help for Darlo?


Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP
✔
@grantshapps
To ensure those who absolutely-need-to-travel are able to safely I’m requesting the rail industry ask retired staff including signallers to assist in this great national effort to beat #coronavirusuk.

The thing with this is that your competencies to work a signal box expires after six months. They would need to come into a signal box being run by a qualified signaller and re-learn it meaning you are putting the health of the existing worker in jeopardy.
There aren't that many that have gone from this area anyway at the moment so it won't really effect us if they do implement this

 

[Dennisons Wrong Foot]

San Antonio under a "Stay home, work safe" order from midnight tonight.. This means all "non-essential" businesses should be closed but we have the same uncertainties that you do. It is impossible to list every single job so much of it is open to interpretation. My liquor store is staying open (you cannot buy spirits anywhere else), so the local cigar shop has decided that he can also stay open.

This is how "essential" businesses have been defined:

Businesses that are exempt from the order include:

Healthcare operations - this includes hospitals, clinics, dentists, pharmaceutical companies and veterinary offices.
Government functions that provide for the health, safety, and welfare of the public - this includes first responders, emergency personnel, trash collection, water and electric utilities.
School and education personnel - this includes public and private K-12 schools, colleges, and universities that are facilitating distance learning.
Companies providing or maintaining infrastructure - this includes construction of public works, housing, or other infrastructure to support critical needs, like gas, electricity, sewage, water, internet, and telecommunications.
Businesses related to transportation - this includes gas stations, repair shops, car dealerships, manufacturers, public transportation (buses, taxis, rideshare companies, and the airport).
Information technology companies providing and maintaining internet and telecommunications systems.
Retail businesses that sell food, gas and household products - that includes grocery stores, big box stores, farmers' markets, laundromats, and dry cleaners.
Charitable organizations that provide food, shelter, and services to economically disadvantaged or vulnerable populations - including animals.
Hotels and other temporary residence facilities
Businesses providing home maintenance and other services - this includes mail and shipping companies, building maintenance, plumbers, electricians, exterminators, and professional services (such as legal or accounting services necessary to comply with legally required activities like filing taxes.
News media - this includes newspapers, television, radio, and other outlets providing information to the public.
Financial institutions - this includes banks, credit unions, and title companies.
Childcare services.

 

[AndyWolves]

Working from home with two 3 year olds running around just isn't possible

 

[machin05]

Working from home with two 3 year olds running around just isn't possible

There's two of us trying to work from home with one laptop and 3 children 7 or under. Just got to do what we can and keep everyone in our house safe and out of the healthcare system.

 

[AndyWolves]

There's two of us trying to work from home with one laptop and 3 children 7 or under. Just got to do what we can and keep everyone in our house safe and out of the healthcare system.

Yep, no doubt the aim - do our best to not get the virus and stop the kids doing anything which will land them in A+E.

Meetings & conf. calls are ok but trying to do actual work is impossible

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Hmmmm

Just got furloughed. Spoke to the MD and he said well - your wife has asthma and I want to all I can to protect her. I then pointed out she is being dragged back into the NHS and is probably going to end up getting a lot more exposure from that than anything I might bring home, but he was insistent. He wants to be ultra-ultra-cautious. And he is topping up the 80% so I get full pay. An extremely generous gesture. I mentioned I have known him many years, and he looks utterly dreadful. Exhausted and so worried. He reckons the entire factory will probably be forcibly closed very soon.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Trump really is a fucking weapons grade quimbecile. He is going to kill millions because he thinks saving the economy is the only way to get re-elected.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Right. Listen up you shitgibbon, you cannot do those two things at once. No.

 

[Del Woppio]

What an absolute cunt

 

[Johnny75]

There's two of us trying to work from home with one laptop and 3 children 7 or under. Just got to do what we can and keep everyone in our house safe and out of the healthcare system.

I may end up in the healthcare system, rocking, dribbling and in a straight jacket it I have to do this for more than a couple of months.