Is the new strain very serious?

[MerinoFroggie]

I'm thinking the new strain must be very serious and governments are withholding the information for now until after Christmas so we can have somewhat of an OKish Christmas day. I feel they will drop a bombshell after Christmas and maybe even introduce a harder and harsher lockdown like in wuhan.

It must be serious for the government to implement a quick lockdown, and cancel travel and ban Christmas. It must be serious for the eu countries to start closing of the UK where the new strain is higher. A lot of the eu never closed off from each other earlier in the pandemic when it was kicking off. Some places did close off and some had travel restrictions and as soon as possible there was travel red, orange, green light map within the eu and Europe.

It must be serious.

If its very serious why don't they tell us now and screw Christmas. There will be people breaking guidelines all around but it might shake people up and make them sit up straight and behave and follow the guidelines on travel and contacts.

Stop spreading conspiracy and fear.

Have a word with yourself for fucks sake.

I don't think you are correct.

The new strain is much more infectious. Almost twice as much. It doesn't need to be any more serious for the government to need to take it very very seriously - this could mean the death rate doubling in a few weeks time so a swift lockdown means that will be double a lower number rather than double a higher number. However, for those not at elevated risk there is no material change in their low risk.

I'm not spreading conspiracy and fear. I asked a question on the new strain and my question is more of a thought that it must be serious considering the governments are closing off from the UK where the new strain is higher.

It's serious because it's more transmissible. More rapid spread -> more hospitals being inadequate to cope with numbers -> people dying unnecessarily.

The information on it being more serious because it's more transmissible has been clearly given. We might have hoped that by now people would understand exponentials and why this means following guidelines to minimise spread is even more important but unfortunately it seems not.

Of course it's serious. To do this days before Christmas and Boris making himself look a complete and utter cunt and the backlash plus other countries banning flights from here, Scotland closing its border etc etc.

I love rural. We are tier 2. Our smallish county hospital 18 wards are now covid wards (including using some maternity wards) 6 are normal wards. Tier 2. Next to tier 4. It's absolutely fucking serious

I don't believe it's that serious in that while it might spread more quickly it won't kill more people. It's been around since September, it doesn't cause any more serious disease than the original virus, and it's still preventable by the current vaccines.

I personally believe Boris stressed its existence it to ensure compliance with the latest set of lockdown rules. Unfortunately the scare tactics have worked better than he could have possibly imagined; hence other countries reacting as they have.

Don't get me wrong - I believe the rise in cases is very real and very serious. But I think it has as much to do with a relaxation of rules as it has to do with a new strain of virus.

If the strain has been around since September, isn't Europe banning from the UK a knee jerk reaction? If its around since September it will be everywhere my now.

Yes, it will be everywhere. But Boris standing up and forbidding international travel means that other countries have to react. And they have.

The people I feel really sorry for are the truckers stuck in the Dover queue who just want to get home (to EU countries). I doubt many of them will take jobs delivering to the UK in the next few weeks, until Brexit/Covid settle down at least.

I am in kent, i have covid day 4 and im feeling better

Now my DP is sick and i came on mn to assuage my rising panic.

This thread is not helping.

I dont think i can take much more

I'm so sorry theoriginal. I hope you and your family start feeling better soon and very best wishes for you and all here.

@TheoriginalLEM

I am in kent, i have covid day 4 and im feeling better

Now my DP is sick and i came on mn to assuage my rising panic.

This thread is not helping.

I dont think i can take much more

You've been on MN long enough to know you don't come here for reassurance!

Hope you're feeling better soon.

I don't think this strain is more deadly but more contagious means so many more people off work, isolating etc like nhs staff, teachers, bin men etc which will cause collapse in vital areas, so harsher lockdowns needed.

@Lockheart

Stop spreading conspiracy and fear.

Have a word with yourself for fucks sake.

Stop policing people's worries.

• I am in kent, i have covid day 4 and im feeling better

Now my DP is sick and i came on mn to assuage my rising panic.
*

hopefully that will help assuage some other people's panic - chances are you had the new strain, and you're feeling better after 4 days.

Maybe I’m just being thick but it’s Covid-19 just a strain of ‘Coronavirus’

And we were never worried about Coronaviruses before

So as a society now are we going to have to get worried about every single strain of coronaviruses that ever mutate again ie. coughs and colds etc

I don’t understand it

For the first time in months I am awake at night worrying about covid. I thought the announcements would be less worrying by now.

@lu00

Maybe I’m just being thick but it’s Covid-19 just a strain of ‘Coronavirus’

And we were never worried about Coronaviruses before

So as a society now are we going to have to get worried about every single strain of coronaviruses that ever mutate again ie. coughs and colds etc

I don’t understand it

Just wow! You really don't understand why anyone is worried about something that has killed over one and a half million people?

@MerinoFroggie

I'm not spreading conspiracy and fear. I asked a question on the new strain and my question is more of a thought that it must be serious considering the governments are closing off from the UK where the new strain is higher.

You are suggesting the government are lying/withholding Important information from the public, suggesting we are at more risk on the basis of zero evidence.

If you don’t think that is spreading conspiracy and fear, what exactly do you think is?

@Thedarknightsaredrawingin me too. I haven’t felt like this since March when it was all so unknown. I feel we’re there again and worse. At least we had the hope of the vaccine but I’ve got a bad feeling about that now too...

Why are the airports still operating? Yesterday we had 1000s from the U.K. flying to Dublin. But even from today people will still be allowed to travel to Belfast and thereby onto Dublin spreading it all around the island of Ireland.

And then from Ireland people will travel to the rest of Europe. CLOSE ALL THE AIRPORTS IN EUROPE ffs. China has had an international travel ban since February ffs. with mandatory - government controlled and enforced - two week hotel room quarantine for the very, very few incoming flights. At this stage it simply looks like China cares more about the health of their citizens than we do in the West do. There simply is no other explanation left.

Okay, February 2020. Nine months ago.
Irish Health Minister :

Although it would send “a very poor message” in terms of trying to contain Covid-19 if Ireland actively encouraged people to travel here, Harris said, “we can’t ban travel”.
“Let’s pretend we decided in Ireland [that] we weren’t going to accept flights from Italy. That wouldn’t work because Italian people could be flying to France and France on to Ireland,” said Harris.
“We live in the European Union. There is free movement. That’s a proportionate and responsible thing to do,” he said.
A spokesperson for Dublin Airport Authority (DAA), meanwhile, told TheJournal.ie that it continues to follow advice issued by the HSE’s Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) which in turn follows advice from the World Health Organisation. “The HPSC has said that given there are no currently no direct flights to Dublin Airport from China or Hong Kong, there is no requirement for entry screening at Dublin Airport,” they added.

Hang on. I thought Europe was being guided by the science. Why is he talking about the sanctity of freedom of movement within the EU??? That’s politics, not science. Btw I’m strongly proEU, but it seems we’ve been taken for a ride here in the West with “follow the science” guff. Doesn’t look like it to me.

@lu00

Maybe I’m just being thick but it’s Covid-19 just a strain of ‘Coronavirus’

And we were never worried about Coronaviruses before

So as a society now are we going to have to get worried about every single strain of coronaviruses that ever mutate again ie. coughs and colds etc

I don’t understand it

Flipping heck - 9 months down the line and you’re asking this basic question?

it doesn't cause any more serious disease than the original virus, and it's still preventable by the current vaccines

Not trying to scare everyone but we actually don't know this yet do we?

I read that the scientists are urgently Turing to confirm that the vaccine will work against this new strain , but it will take two weeks