Covid 19 to prepare or not to prepare and should we be worried?

[adey67]

My own thoughts on this I will post later when I have more time but suffice it to say I have bought two weeks non perishable foodstuffs and medications and next week I'll get another couple of weeks worth and I'd advise anyone to do the same. No need to go mad like a prepper but panic and fear is probably more dangerous than the virus at the moment and there are reports of empty supermarkets stripped bare in Italy and Amsterdam so sensible preparations seem like a good idea to me. 

The virus mortality rate is uncertain due to to under reporting in China and Iran but current data sets place it as between 1 and 2% usually in persons with significant co-morbitity which is higher than seasonal flu but not exactly apocalyptical, however the risk of serious illness requiring intensive medical intervention such as oxygen therapy and mechanical ventilation is between 10 and 20% and it appears that the case fatality rate of 1 to 2% is only accurate where good medical care is available, if Covid19 goes pandemic and out of control even countries with world class medical infrastructure will start struggling to cope and then the mortality rate will inevitably increase but our two biggest enemies currently are panic and complacency its not the apocalypse but it is serious and its not "just like the flu" maybe in the future it will be but I think it's a mistake to think about it in those terms at the moment.

[Phaedrus]

I'm not particularly concerned. It takes a great deal to make me worry.

[brewerb]

I'll probably just kill and eat the wife. That's the only way I can think of to make the two weeks survivable.

[Szuchow]

I'm not worried. It's not the first supposedly dangerous disease that appeared during my lifetime.

[Phaedrus]

I'm confused, though.

How does coronavirus = covid 19?

There's no "d" in coronavirus and what the heck is the 19 for?

[Dānu]

Being close to the bottom rung of the ladder, I don't have many options beyond simply grinning and bearing it. The only thing I can realistically do is shift more towards savings versus new purchases.

[Dānu]

I'm confused, though.

How does coronavirus = covid 19?

There's no "d" in coronavirus and what the heck is the 19 for?

IIRC, Covid-19 is the illness, the virus is named differently.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, a virus closely related to the SARS virus.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronavirus_disease_2019

[adey67]

I'm confused, though.

How does coronavirus = covid 19?

There's no "d" in coronavirus and what the heck is the 19 for?

Good question Covid stands for corona virus disease possibly ??? Not 100% sure. 19 I do know stands for 2019 the year it first made its appearance in China.

[Dancefortwo]

I'm not particularly concerned. It takes a great deal to make me worry.

I'm with you.  This isn't the Bubonic plague which killed 60 million people in the 13th century  nor the pandemic of 1917 before antibiotics and modern medicine.  It's not AIDS which was pretty much a death sentence in the 1980's.   I don't see thousands dying like flies.  I sorry people are getting sick but a little bit happy that Orangefuckface is getting some heat from his stupid followers.

Edit to add: The 1917 Flu Pandemic killed around 40 million people. More people died from the flu than from WW I. Remember that this was before antibiotics. The flu was a virus but secondary infections in the lungs happened and would have been treated with anti-biotics had it been available.

[adey67]

I'm not particularly concerned. It takes a great deal to make me worry.

I'm with you.  This isn't the Bubonic plague which killed 60 million people in the 13th century  nor the pandemic of 1917 before antibiotics and modern medicine.  It's not AIDS which was pretty much a death sentence in the 1980's.   I don't see thousands dying like flies.  I sorry people are getting sick but a little bit happy that Orangefuckface is getting some heat from his stupid followers.

Edit to add:  The 1917 Flu Pandemic killed around 40 million people.  More people died from the flu than from WW I.  Remember that this was before antibiotics.  The flu was a virus but secondary infections in the lungs happened and would have been treated with anti-biotics had it been available.

I agree with everything you've said but it's a new infection and I think we do need to take it seriously, the danger comes not so much from the virus itself but the panic it can cause, trillions have been wiped off the stock markets worldwide already, which is why I chose to buy up some non perishables in case panic buying strips the shelves or supply chains get disrupted, I can always donate any unneeded stuff to a food bank later. We don't need to panic it's not the apocalypse by any stretch of the imagination but complacency should also be avoided at least until we know more.

[skyking]

I don't keep foods around I would not eat, but we do have things like pasta and sauce, oatmeal, plenty of coffee and tea, canned green beans, etc.
I look at the "best by" dates and rotate the new to the back of a modest pantry. I figure at least two weeks of boring normal food supply, counting the freezer. It's not really hard to do or preppy looneytunes.

[Deesse23]

I am prepared. Bring it on!

[brewerb]

Is stocking up 7.62x39 something that should be done? 1000 lots are on sale cheap.

[Dancefortwo]

I am prepared. Bring it on!  

LOLOLOL!   That reminds me of my great grandfather.  He was a machine operator during the building of the Panama Canal.  So many working on the Canal got very sick from molaria or yellow fever, 12,000 died.  He never drank water the whole year that he worked there, he only drank Old Hickory Whiskey and never suffered a sick day the entire time. Everyone started calling him "Hickory" and the nicname stuck.  To his death he was called Hickory.  It probably damaged his liver but what the hell, he survived.

[Bucky Ball]

I'm confused, though.

How does coronavirus = covid 19?

There's no "d" in coronavirus and what the heck is the 19 for?

There are a number of covid viruses, (some are "common colds").

[Deesse23]

Bring it on. My MG42 is prepared for your f.ing zombie apocalypse!  
The 9mms are just in case, you know, too many zombies, not enough bullets.

[Bucky Ball]

I'm not particularly concerned. It takes a great deal to make me worry.

I'm with you.  This isn't the Bubonic plague which killed 60 million people in the 13th century  nor the pandemic of 1917 before antibiotics and modern medicine.  It's not AIDS which was pretty much a death sentence in the 1980's.   I don't see thousands dying like flies.  I sorry people are getting sick but a little bit happy that Orangefuckface is getting some heat from his stupid followers.

Edit to add:  The 1917 Flu Pandemic killed around 40 million people.  More people died from the flu than from WW I.  Remember that this was before antibiotics.  The flu was a virus but secondary infections in the lungs happened and would have been treated with anti-biotics had it been available.

I agree with everything you've said but it's a new infection and I think we do need to take it seriously, the danger comes not so much from the virus itself but the panic it can cause, trillions have been wiped off the stock markets worldwide already, which is why I chose to buy up some non perishables in case panic buying strips the shelves or supply chains get disrupted, I can always donate any unneeded stuff to a food bank later. We don't need to panic it's not the apocalypse by any stretch of the imagination but complacency should also be avoided at least until we know more.

Due to under TESTING, which is the huge failing in the US so far, (yesterday the available test kits to medical centers was FAR less than they needed) we don't know the current state of exposure. It's entirely possible many (FAR FAR) more are already exposed (and didn't know it, or had a mild form, or had pneumonia and they were not tested). I've decided to avoid crowds and live life and see what happens. Since I work in a med center it's inevitable I'll be exposed. I actually hope I get it soon, and get it over with. The world's foremost expert in pandemic is Dr. Michael Osterholm at the University of Minnesota. He probably has a web-page and would have the best information available anywhere. I'll look for it later.

[Tres Leches]

My own thoughts on this I will post later when I have more time but suffice it to say I have bought two weeks non perishable foodstuffs and medications and next week I'll get another couple of weeks worth and I'd advise anyone to do the same. No need to go mad like a prepper but panic and fear is probably more dangerous than the virus at the moment and there are reports of empty supermarkets stripped bare in Italy and Amsterdam so sensible preparations seem like a good idea to me. 

I'm not afraid. But I'm responsible for the well-being of another human (my daughter) so I feel I should take a few precautions.

I'm putting together a worse-case-scenario dystopia pandemic kit and will put it away after telling my kid and her dad where it is.

Here's what I'm putting in it so far:
Cash
N95 masks (bought after the terrible smoke from the Camp Fire in 2018 and I put away for the next fire)
Bleach and soap
Disposable gloves
Fever and cold medicine
I was going to buy hand sanitizer but word on the street here is there is a shortage since there is a virus patient in a local hospital. Soap will do.

I'm mystified why people believe they need to have massive stores of food on hand. I always have non-perishable foods in my kitchen but I don't feel the need to now buy loads more. How does that help in a pandemic? We Americans are awash in food everywhere. And that's going to suddenly disappear in a day or two? I mean, it would if people start panic-buying but, again, how does having loads of food in the garage help an individual in this situation? 
And why do people keep talking about non-perishable foods as if a hurricane is bearing down? Is the coronavirus going to make the electricity go out?
What about water? What if all the staff at your water treatment plant become sick and can't work to ensure clean water will flow through your taps for drinking and washing your hands? 
The chance of that happening isn't high but so are the chances of Americans starving because of coronavirus.

-Teresa

[adey67]

I don't keep foods around I would not eat, but we do have things like pasta and sauce, oatmeal, plenty of coffee and tea, canned green beans, etc.
I look at the "best by" dates and rotate the new to the back of a modest pantry. I figure at least two weeks of boring normal food supply, counting the freezer. It's not really hard to do or preppy looneytunes.

^^^^
THIS! 

This is sensible and probably perfectly adequate prep, I only bought stuff because I had no food redundancy.

[Dancefortwo]

I'm with you.  This isn't the Bubonic plague which killed 60 million people in the 13th century  nor the pandemic of 1917 before antibiotics and modern medicine.  It's not AIDS which was pretty much a death sentence in the 1980's.   I don't see thousands dying like flies.  I sorry people are getting sick but a little bit happy that Orangefuckface is getting some heat from his stupid followers.

Edit to add:  The 1917 Flu Pandemic killed around 40 million people.  More people died from the flu than from WW I.  Remember that this was before antibiotics.  The flu was a virus but secondary infections in the lungs happened and would have been treated with anti-biotics had it been available.

I agree with everything you've said but it's a new infection and I think we do need to take it seriously, the danger comes not so much from the virus itself but the panic it can cause, trillions have been wiped off the stock markets worldwide already, which is why I chose to buy up some non perishables in case panic buying strips the shelves or supply chains get disrupted, I can always donate any unneeded stuff to a food bank later. We don't need to panic it's not the apocalypse by any stretch of the imagination but complacency should also be avoided at least until we know more.

Due to under TESTING, which is the huge failing in the US so far, (yesterday the available test kits to medical centers was FAR less than they needed) we don't know the current state of exposure. It's entirely possible many (FAR FAR) more are already exposed (and didn't know it, or had a mild form, or had pneumonia and they were not tested). I've decided to avoid crowds and live life and see what happens. Since I work in a med center it's inevitable I'll be exposed. I actually hope I get it soon, and get it over with. The world's foremost expert in pandemic is Dr. Michael Osterholm at the University of Minnesota. He probably has a web-page and would have the best information available anywhere. I'll look for it later.

Meh.   Stlll not concerned.  Going about my life as usual.

[adey67]

My own thoughts on this I will post later when I have more time but suffice it to say I have bought two weeks non perishable foodstuffs and medications and next week I'll get another couple of weeks worth and I'd advise anyone to do the same. No need to go mad like a prepper but panic and fear is probably more dangerous than the virus at the moment and there are reports of empty supermarkets stripped bare in Italy and Amsterdam so sensible preparations seem like a good idea to me. 

I'm not afraid. But I'm responsible for the well-being of another human (my daughter) so I feel I should take a few precautions.

I'm putting together a worse-case-scenario dystopia pandemic kit and will put it away after telling my kid and her dad where it is.

Here's what I'm putting in it so far:
Cash
N95 masks (bought after the terrible smoke from the Camp Fire in 2018 and I put away for the next fire)
Bleach and soap
Disposable gloves
Fever and cold medicine
I was going to buy hand sanitizer but word on the street here is there is a shortage since there is a virus patient in a local hospital. Soap will do.

I'm mystified why people believe they need to have massive stores of food on hand. I always have non-perishable foods in my kitchen but I don't feel the need to now buy loads more. How does that help in a pandemic? We Americans are awash in food everywhere. And that's going to suddenly disappear in a day or two? I mean, it would if people start panic-buying but, again, how does having loads of food in the garage help an individual in this situation? 
And why do people keep talking about non-perishable foods as if a hurricane is bearing down? Is the coronavirus going to make the electricity go out?
What about water? What if all the staff at your water treatment plant become sick and can't work to ensure clean water will flow through your taps for drinking and washing your hands? 
The chance of that happening isn't high but so are the chances of Americans starving because of coronavirus.

-Teresa

You don't need massive food stores, that's insane and unrealistic prepper mentality, but you are wise to make reasonable preparations for what is probably a pandemic all but in name. I'm struggling to understand why people are so keen here to play things down and are frankly a little complacent maybe they think it looks cool and rad or something idk I only hope I'm not here in months to come saying "I told you so bitches" . I remember working at a hospital in the UK hit by noro virus and inspite of robust infection control measures one infected ward of patients became two became three before all were affected in about two weeks shit like this  can get out of control really quickly in my experience..IMO complacency is as big a danger as apocalyptic panic and fear

[Dānu]

My own thoughts on this I will post later when I have more time but suffice it to say I have bought two weeks non perishable foodstuffs and medications and next week I'll get another couple of weeks worth and I'd advise anyone to do the same. No need to go mad like a prepper but panic and fear is probably more dangerous than the virus at the moment and there are reports of empty supermarkets stripped bare in Italy and Amsterdam so sensible preparations seem like a good idea to me. 

I'm not afraid. But I'm responsible for the well-being of another human (my daughter) so I feel I should take a few precautions.

I'm putting together a worse-case-scenario dystopia pandemic kit and will put it away after telling my kid and her dad where it is.

Here's what I'm putting in it so far:
Cash
N95 masks (bought after the terrible smoke from the Camp Fire in 2018 and I put away for the next fire)
Bleach and soap
Disposable gloves
Fever and cold medicine
I was going to buy hand sanitizer but word on the street here is there is a shortage since there is a virus patient in a local hospital. Soap will do.

I'm mystified why people believe they need to have massive stores of food on hand. I always have non-perishable foods in my kitchen but I don't feel the need to now buy loads more. How does that help in a pandemic? We Americans are awash in food everywhere. And that's going to suddenly disappear in a day or two? I mean, it would if people start panic-buying but, again, how does having loads of food in the garage help an individual in this situation? 
And why do people keep talking about non-perishable foods as if a hurricane is bearing down? Is the coronavirus going to make the electricity go out?
What about water? What if all the staff at your water treatment plant become sick and can't work to ensure clean water will flow through your taps for drinking and washing your hands? 
The chance of that happening isn't high but so are the chances of Americans starving because of coronavirus.

-Teresa

I believe the point is to reduce the amount of time you have to spend in the community in the event of an outbreak, so as to reduce your exposure to infected people.

[adey67]

My own thoughts on this I will post later when I have more time but suffice it to say I have bought two weeks non perishable foodstuffs and medications and next week I'll get another couple of weeks worth and I'd advise anyone to do the same. No need to go mad like a prepper but panic and fear is probably more dangerous than the virus at the moment and there are reports of empty supermarkets stripped bare in Italy and Amsterdam so sensible preparations seem like a good idea to me. 

I'm not afraid. But I'm responsible for the well-being of another human (my daughter) so I feel I should take a few precautions.

I'm putting together a worse-case-scenario dystopia pandemic kit and will put it away after telling my kid and her dad where it is.

Here's what I'm putting in it so far:
Cash
N95 masks (bought after the terrible smoke from the Camp Fire in 2018 and I put away for the next fire)
Bleach and soap
Disposable gloves
Fever and cold medicine
I was going to buy hand sanitizer but word on the street here is there is a shortage since there is a virus patient in a local hospital. Soap will do.

I'm mystified why people believe they need to have massive stores of food on hand. I always have non-perishable foods in my kitchen but I don't feel the need to now buy loads more. How does that help in a pandemic? We Americans are awash in food everywhere. And that's going to suddenly disappear in a day or two? I mean, it would if people start panic-buying but, again, how does having loads of food in the garage help an individual in this situation? 
And why do people keep talking about non-perishable foods as if a hurricane is bearing down? Is the coronavirus going to make the electricity go out?
What about water? What if all the staff at your water treatment plant become sick and can't work to ensure clean water will flow through your taps for drinking and washing your hands? 
The chance of that happening isn't high but so are the chances of Americans starving because of coronavirus.

-Teresa

I believe the point is to reduce the amount of time you have to spend in the community in the event of an outbreak, so as to reduce your exposure to infected people.

Yup, also with regards water its is mostly automated there would need to be a pretty much apocalyptic nuclear war type scenario before water was seriously disrupted plus water is priority 1 for government as hospitals and government need it, even in a dire situation water would be maintained if necessary by the military and I don't think this is that scenario. Also non perishable foodstuffs have a longer life and who's to say a regular power cut due to a downed tree wouldn't happen? If that occurred it might be longer than usual before power is restored plus you can keep them until you need them or the need for them is passed.

[adey67]

Posted in error sorry.

[Thumpalumpacus]

Not trippin' over Captain Trips here. I always keep non-perishable food around for tornadoes/floods, living out in the country. And while my job is working with the public, my only concern is my mom, who's 75. There are a few cases in quarantine at Lackland AFB about 90 miles from here, so there's that.

It's going to spread. Eat well, be careful of exposures, and hope for the best.