Crowds in the parks yesterday

[Mrgrinch]

I've been seeing pictures and videos of the amount of people gathering in the sun yesterday and I am genuinely shocked.

Has nobody learned anything in the past year?
Do they want to continue going in and out of lockdown forever?

I really do understand the people who just want their freedom back, I want mine too. But the pictures of Hyde park yesterday look like something from a music festival. Not to mention the mess left behind this morning.

Should I just shut up because transmission is low outdoors? Or is this a sign that warm weather means people ignore all the rules?

Nope, no one has learned a freaking thing! Least of all the government. This half-arsed not really having a lockdown crap is responsible for dragging this situation on and on and ON and I am FED UP. Just look at the stupid posts on here - people actually thinking that there have not been "spikes" in infections. That BLOWS MY MIND! We cannot get infection numbers down below 3-5 thousand per day and people seem to think that's a good result? That's progress?? That's reason to come out of lockdown?? WAKE UP!! Take a look at Australia recently. Brisbane had an outbreak, centred around two individuals in hospital and a doctor and nurse that caught it. They immediately went into a strict three day lockdown while their EXTREMELY efficient tracing and testing system kicked in. Within hours they had published lists of places the infected individuals had travelled to or visited including several different towns and events - supermarkets, shops, restaurants etc - so people could get tested. They VERY efficiently tracked down the 20 or so people to whom it had been transmitted, mandating self-isolation, and when after several days they found no further cases of community transmission, the lockdown ended. THREE DAYS! People are now back to going to pubs, bars, gyms, parks, restaurants, work and everywhere else that normal people visit. THAT is how it should be done. Unfortunately, as long as everyone fails to understand how easily this virus is passed on we will never get out of this situation. The UK is doing great with vaccination but unless the rest of the world catches up awfully quickly, it will all be utterly pointless. I despair!

News from Ireland - 0.1% of cases linked to outdoor transmission. No reason to think it’s any different in the U.K.

www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/outdoor-transmission-accounts-for-0-1-of-state-s-covid-19-cases-1.4529036?mode=amp&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&__twitter_impression=true

They are breaking no rules. They are outside in a park. For goodness sake. Get a life.

The 1% linked to outdoor transmission presumably never went near anybody else or went supermarket shopping?

To all those frothing at the mouth for people having the temerity to enjoy Easter or visit a park, 8000 people are arriving daily and not being tested or quarantining. Do something about this.

@Stratfordplace

To all those frothing at the mouth for people having the temerity to enjoy Easter or visit a park, 8000 people are arriving daily and not being tested or quarantining. Do something about this.

I don’t get the big deal about the 8000 entering the UK

They are subject to...

If you're travelling to England you must:
take 2 coronavirus (COVID-19) tests after you arrive in England - you'll need to book these before you travel
either quarantine in the place you're staying or in a managed quarantine hotel for 10 days when you arrive in England
What you need to do depends on where you travel in the 10 days before you arrive in England.
If you travel in or through a country on the banned travel list (sometimes called the 'red list') in those 10 days you will need to quarantine in a managed quarantine hotel. If you do not travel in or through a country on the banned travel list in those 10 days you will need to quarantine in the place you're staying.

Seems reasonable to me

[quote AlecTrevelyan006]News from Ireland - 0.1% of cases linked to outdoor transmission. No reason to think it’s any different in the U.K.

www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/outdoor-transmission-accounts-for-0-1-of-state-s-covid-19-cases-1.4529036?mode=amp&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&__twitter_impression=true[/quote]
@alectrevelyan006

A pleasing statistic, but it is not a measure of the percentage of people outdoors. For example, if (theoretically) 99% of people stay indoors, then only 1% can get infected via outdoor transmission. Then if half these outdoor folk keep distant, only 0.5% are likely to get infected outdoors. This model would mean that the " 0.1% of cases linked to outdoor transmission" represents 20% of the outdoor group who don't socially distance themselves.OK, these numbers may not be accurate, but the principle still holds valid.
Obviously the % of cases linked to outdoor transmission will be low if most people don't go outdoors and don't mingle. On the other hand, the more people who cluster in the parks and ignore social distancing, the higher this percentage should be.
Otherwise, its like saying that only 0.002% of cases are linked with climbing Mount Everest. This figure looks low, but maybe only 100 people climbed Everest during the pandemic, of whom 90% of those sharing tents contracted COVID-19.
Comparing percentages must be done within the same sample group, or else the data could dangerously mislead.

@loulouljh

They are breaking no rules. They are outside in a park. For goodness sake. Get a life.

@loulouljh

Fair comment. However, there are very many people (but not all) who wrongly seem to think that mingling closely, sharing drinks and generally ignoring distancing guidelines is ok. It is not ok. Enjoy the outdoors, but be vigilant in preventing viral spreading. You won't know you have the virus for typically 6 to 10 days. It is invisible. You could be spreading it to others more vulnerable than yourself.

People are not quarantining though that’s the point. There are exemptions and they are being made full use of.