Corona Virus Updates Part 3

originally posted by: sirlancelot

originally posted by: neurosurgeon
I work in the testing and certification field nowadays for a variety of antimicrobial products (things like micro ban, or Dow Silvadur) using test methods that show efficacy at reducing microbial populations. This includes general work like NSF sanitation certs on food equipment etc for in place cleanings.

Anyways, my company has about 50,000 employees. We had a engineer come back from a multi day conference in a few locations. He had passed through 3 different major airport hubs.

He was hacking up a lung. Fever etc, had to come in to finish some work (dick.) He went to the clinic - asked for a corona virus test, they refused due to no connection with someone from mainland china..

Can you share a general regional location where your company is? Those major hubs where? Probably nothing just curious.

My company has basically locations in every country of the world. We recently had one of our labs in Hong Kong shut down for two weeks due to an employee coming down with Covid19.

We receive samples on a regular basis from all around the world from testing. Our internal safety people are parroting CDC.

"Much is unknown about how 2019-nCoV, a new coronavirus, spreads. Current knowledge is largely based on what is known about similar coronaviruses. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that are common in many different species of animals, including camels, cattle, cats, and bats. Rarely, animal coronaviruses can infect people and then spread between people such as with MERS, SARS, and now with 2019-nCoV.

Most often, spread from person-to-person happens among close contacts (about 6 feet). Person-to-person spread is thought to occur mainly via respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes, similar to how influenza and other respiratory pathogens spread. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.

It’s currently unclear if a person can get 2019-nCoV by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes."

a reply to: burdman30ott6

It's for that reason I've been trying to find numbers on exactly how many people have died from the flu and viral pneumonia this year and see if it's drastically more than last year at this time. I've been searching for information from cook county Illinois but I haven't had any luck. Could also be the HIPAA laws that prevent this information from being put out

originally posted by: musicismagic
Excuse me for asking this, but (Americans) how are you guys "really" taking this virus situation at the present times. Has the info finally caught on that its here to stay until a drug is found to treat it (hopefully to kill it completely) and how are people thinking about their job situation there.

Already the govt. is asking for those that can work at home to work at home. Already job interviews are done over the net. And the universities (well we have a lot of Chinese coming here for medical training) , a big subject on what to do with foreigners that are coming over to study. Landlords are going probably shut their doors on them once they get here. (of course, housing was/is taken care before leaving their country.
Seems like it is just one big mess after another. And NO, this is NOT fear mongering mim thinking as pointed out to me earlier. Its just facts of life now we have to adjust to.

I have taken it very seriously. I bugged out of Albuquerque, and moved way North, into a sparsely populated area in the Northern part of the USA.

a reply to: burdman30ott6

Exactly Prepare for What ?
You cannot see where this is All Leading People ? .....Boo !

I think the real tipping-point for this this is really going to be in India.
When it spreads through India, will it:
* Kill at the same rate it may be in Wuhan? (presumably higher than the official numbers so-far), or
* Be more like a flu, where some will die but its a very small percentage?

I do not for a moment believe this thing is going to be "contained", its really just a question about what the mortality rate will really be over time - outside of China. To me, India with its high-density of population seems like huge enough test case to show that.

Of course, I'm not in the medical field, so ... eh?

a reply to: pasiphae

All right ... so what?

If it's not hitting us any harder than a bad flu season ... then so what?

Aside from the obvious, that we aren't being told the truth. It really isn't any worse than the flu because no one can tell the difference.

Has climate or air currents been considered as a factor?

a reply to: ketsuko


So far Reported , a 95 Percent Survival Rate .....Hmm..........

originally posted by: Beltalowda
a reply to: burdman30ott6

It's for that reason I've been trying to find numbers on exactly how many people have died from the flu and viral pneumonia this year and see if it's drastically more than last year at this time. I've been searching for information from cook county Illinois but I haven't had any luck. Could also be the HIPAA laws that prevent this information from being put out

Trying contacting your State's Office of Public Health and talk to the epidemiologist that reports the flu numbers to CDC? They track flu cases in your State. Or call your local health department if you just want Cook County.


CDC produces a weekly flu surveillance report. Google that and see if that helps as well

originally posted by: IAMTAT
Has climate or air currents been considered as a factor?

Yes, at least in theory.

It targets ACE2, and there is some evidence that smokers have more ACE2. In China, a significant portion of the male population smokes and that's before you consider factors like air pollution which is horrific in China. There are some studies about how it may use airborne particles to more efficiently spread itself.

Between the environmental damage caused by the craptastic air quality in China, etc., that may explain the situation we see there to some degree and why it doesn't seem to be as bad elsewhere. It may also explain why the disease seems to leave the children mostly alone with a much milder course of illness.

originally posted by: ketsuko

originally posted by: IAMTAT
Has climate or air currents been considered as a factor?

Yes, at least in theory.

It targets ACE2, and there is some evidence that smokers have more ACE2. In China, a significant portion of the male population smokes and that's before you consider factors like air pollution which is horrific in China. There are some studies about how it may use airborne particles to more efficiently spread itself.

Between the environmental damage caused by the craptastic air quality in China, etc., that may explain the situation we see there to some degree and why it doesn't seem to be as bad elsewhere. It may also explain why the disease seems to leave the children mostly alone with a much milder course of illness.

I remember early in the first thread on this topic that HUMIDITY had been identified as a factor in the spread.
Higher humidity = less spread.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: pasiphae

All right ... so what?

If it's not hitting us any harder than a bad flu season ... then so what?

Aside from the obvious, that we aren't being told the truth. It really isn't any worse than the flu because no one can tell the difference.

What I said: But I can't imagine the US lives in a bubble...... how do we know that deaths due to pneumonia and "this years flu season was really really bad"..... how do we know that's not part of this? I'm level headed about this but a lot isn't making sense. We have SOOOO many travelers in the US.

Maybe you misunderstood? The US has admitted they are not fully testing here so HOW can we know any real information? I DO think it's hitting harder than the flu..... and we are being kept in the dark because of faulty test kits so now we have none. I think it's here in the US more than the numbers say by FAR.

originally posted by: Zanti Misfit
a reply to: ketsuko


So far Reported , a 95 Percent Survival Rate .....Hmm..........

So if 80% US population gets it going by your math how many dead? you do the math and lets see how you manage that number.

originally posted by: musicismagic
Excuse me for asking this, but (Americans) how are you guys "really" taking this virus situation at the present times? ...

I can't answer for all places (SE US here), but I think Americans in general are oblivious even though it is a topic of a bit of conversation. I have seen a few more people with news up on their screens etc., but It is almost like if you don't talk about it it's not real. I think by an large nobody cares. It seems to be trickling into a bit more attention, but I suspect a few weeks may change that notably. Currently though, the majority are pretty numb to it from what I have seen.

That said, I am a Falun Dafa practitioner (good understanding of CCP) and this unfolding does not surprise me, for reasons not suited for this thread, but I am also not ... not willing to talk about certain things or speculate much. I just believe there are reasons for tribulations. My personal feeling is this is going to be very shocking when the full truth comes out.

I think some countries and organizations are trying to control a narrative they have no real control of, and others are forthright and frightened and others are putting their trust in the "experts" who are also playing to special interests. I think it is prudent to be prepared for a lot of fear and confusion and I don't believe for a second that the CCP has been remotely forthright.

Just reported, so far this season 16,000 people in America have died from the FLU! That's the damn pandemic.

a reply to: IAMTAT

Let's hear it.

a reply to: carewemust


Out of 29,000,000 cases of the flu per the CDC weekly flu surveillance report

originally posted by: carewemust
Just reported, so far this season 16,000 people in America have died from the FLU! That's the damn pandemic.

The US has 327M people. If 20% of them get sick that's 65,400,000 and if 3% of them die that's 1,962,000. It's a little worse than the flu. That's why cities are shutting down.

Edit to add my math could be wrong because I'm very very tired.

a reply to: pasiphae

I get that ...

But people die every year from the flu. Sometimes lots of people. Maybe more than you like to think about.

My point is that if the deaths from corona virus are indistinguishable from the normal background "noise" of people dying like they would from regular pneumonia caused by other viral or bacterial factors (like the flu). Then how scary is this pandemic, anyhow?

I think it more likely that the flu is the flu in almost every instance right now.

a reply to: musicismagic

Zero change in American daily life. Kobe Bryant's funeral and Harvey Weinstein's trial lead all news today, with a 1,000 point stock market drop (blamed on Coronavirus' impact to China's supply chains) coming in 3rd. As much as the Brits are known for their stoicism, Japanese for their careers, Canadians for their politeness, and Russians for their toughness, Americans are stubborn and self centered to a fault. President Reagan once famously said the difference between a recession and a depression is "a recession is when your neighbor loses their job, a depression is when you lose your job." That quote summarizes Americans pretty thoroughly.