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AIBU?

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Original poster

coronavirus

18 replies

Singlemammaxx · 20/02/2020 05:11

Please someone tell me I am being paranoid

I’ve ordered something from Shanghai in China, can the Coronavirus spread through packages?

I’ve Googled, everything is saying no, as the germs won’t live or breed on cardboard for more than a few hours and it can only be spread through coughing and sneezing. I presume when the package is in the air on the plane the cold will kill any germs?

Please tell me I’m being stupidly paranoid.

OP posts:
Original poster
Singlemammaxx · 20/02/2020 05:12

I hope I’m being paranoid Confused

OP posts:
Peridot1 · 20/02/2020 05:15

You are being paranoid.

When did you order it? Shanghai is pretty much closed down as is the rest of China so you might not get it for quite a while anyway.

PatricksRum · 20/02/2020 05:24

What did you order?

Toomanygerbils · 20/02/2020 05:43

Yep, because every person in the uk who orders from China, plus every business is now at risk... Not. Have you looked at a map to see how big China is and how far away Shanghai is? If there was a slight chance of it spreading via your parcel you wouldn’t receive it. Panic time over

YeahWhatevver · 20/02/2020 05:48

The biggest danger to you from this parcel will driving to the post office to collect it.

CupoTeap · 20/02/2020 05:59

Stop watching the news

Bobleywobley · 20/02/2020 06:12

I dont want to be that paranoid guy, but the OP has a good point. It's extremely unlikely but in theory possible.

"
But how long can the new coronavirus linger on surfaces, anyway? The short answer is, we don't know. But if this new coronavirus resembles other human coronaviruses, such as its "cousins" that cause SARS and MERS, it can stay on surfaces — such as metal, glass or plastic — for as long as nine days, according to a new study. (In comparison, flu viruses can last on surfaces for only about 48 hours.)".
www.livescience.com/how-long-coronavirus-last-surfaces.html

Shouldershrugger · 20/02/2020 06:17

Please correct me if im wrong, but I read that they're even cleaning money as a prevention. I wouldn't order anything from there, for the time being.

Tintinofbeans · 20/02/2020 06:24

Totally agree with the pp. It's way riskier to drive to the post office.
There is lot of imports still coming from China and there cases everywhere.
You are being paranoid op.

Tintinofbeans · 20/02/2020 06:27

KRA they are doing all sorts of ridiculous and useless things... doesn't mean it's useful.
Good luck to you if you are going to buy nothing from China. A lot of what we use comes from there.

ragged · 20/02/2020 06:39

If it could spread thru packages it would be all over the rich countries by now with no apparent cause - it's not all over with no apparent contact how.

tallah · 20/02/2020 06:58

Everything is getting screened and swabbed! I know coz I got a message to say why my parcel is late from there. So don't worry

iVampire · 20/02/2020 07:13

Question, as there seem to be quite a lot of people on this thread who know about viral transmission

It seems this virus can live in favourable surfaces for between 48 hours and 9 days.

If an uninflected person touches a contaminated surface (say a pole on a Piccadilly line tube train) and next touches a pole on a Victoria line train, will that pole be contaminated?

Or is it only things that have been touched directly by a contaminated person?

MachineBee · 20/02/2020 07:21

@iVampire - the contamination of surfaces comes from when a person has germs (virus, bacteria) either sneezes, coughs or touches with unwashed hand that surface. If someone touches that surface they pick up some of the germs on their hands and then when they touch another surface, they leave some behind. And on and on.

That’s why regular handwashing is so important.

HarryElephante · 20/02/2020 07:24

I heard that if you even Google the country 'China', you'll probably get coronavirus.

iVampire · 20/02/2020 07:50

Thanks

I was hoping that kind of transfer would be less likely to the point of ‘theoretically yes, but doesn’t happen in private’

Because one infected person on the tube (Piccadilly line chosen in example as it’s the route in from Heathrow) and contaminating one pole could lead to spread of contaminated surfaces throughout the tube within hours (not to mention that the ride from Heathrow to London takes more than 15 minutes, so direct person to person transmission will be likely too.

I can see why planners are concerned, and why things like the giant decontamination sprays are in use (seen on the news)z and if as po confirms an uninfected person can spread contamination from one surface to another, then cleaning money does make sense

DuploTower · 20/02/2020 07:53

I think one of the Dr John Campbell videos said it's possible and if you are worried leave the package in the garage for a few days, then open it

MachineBee · 20/02/2020 15:49

@iVampire - exactly! But before you get too worried, this is exactly what happens with the common cold, flu etc.

The concerns with CoVID-19 (to use its correct name) is that there are still a lot of unknowns. What’s the infection rate, how long will the virus stay alive on surfaces, is it spread by contact alone or are there other ways of transmission?

You can help yourself by observing sensible personal hygiene habits:

  • wash hands frequently and thoroughly with soap and always before eating
  • avoid touching your face, eyes and mouth with unwashed hands
  • sneeze and cough into a tissue and dispose of in a bin immediately and ideally wash your hands again
  • don’t share cups, utensils etc and wash dishes in hot water or dishwasher
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