LETTER: Unmasking is a major threat to lockdown
by Phil Greenlees, Pinelands.
After reading about a second wave and the spike in new cases of Covid-19, it baffles me that the authorities haven't given thought to one glaring reason. Enter any shop, big or small, and you are expected to sanitise your hands, or, in larger shops, have them sanitised by the person at the door. You will also not be allowed into the shop without wearing a mask. This all makes sense.
Now, we enter into the shop and find that almost all the staff and many of the customers, wear their masks around their chins or down . This is no exaggeration. I do all the shopping in my household, and that's how it is. I have mentioned this to several managers and have pointed out the nearby staff not wearing masks. The response has been that they will "sort it out", but they never do, nor will they. That is, until managers are fined for allowing anyone to let the mask slip. As a 71 year old, catching this virus is likely to have dire consequences. Even a recovery doesn't guarantee a full return to health.
Forget the lockdown, which has been shown to cause as much harm as good. Rather enforce the rule. Nobody wants to be fined.
Ask any surgeon why they and all theatre staff wear full surgical masks during an operation. Even a six-hour operation doesn't seem to have them falling down through asphyxiation, so the mask isn't a problem, it's ignorance and apathy.
* Phil Greenlees, Pinelands.
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media.
LETTER: We run the grave risk of assisting a second wave
As we intensify our efforts to regain an aura of normality under the cloak and deadly shadow of Covid-19, we run the grave risk of assisting the second wave, which is now ravaging the Eastern Cape, Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and will inevitably spill over into the other provinces.
Letting the virus circulate freely among the complacent public would result in deaths and may be left with lasting lung, heart, brain or kidney damage.
There can be no doubt the dreaded second wave is now truly well and truly here.
What remains to be seen is just how bad it will be.
If we allow it to spread unhindered the cost to all of us, in every dimension, will be astronomical.
A major second spike is a scary nightmare for us as we would face blame for more deaths and may have to shutter our economy again.
Infections will probably rebound, and could force authorities to reverse course and tighten restrictions on public activities.
Covid fatigue could create a false sense of security resulting in laxity which we ignore at our peril.
Many in the medical community have watched with a mixture of horror and frustration as their projections of the pandemic’s evolution, and it’s potential death toll, have come to fruition.
A roaring second wave will have a substantial elevated mortality rate as we end and enter a new year.
The assault of the virus on our nation in a second wave could be more profound than in the 1st wave.
A progressive decline in vigilance will, pose a deadly threat to our well being, as we ignore cardinal rules of safety and survival.
Infectious disease models are never static, and several unknowns could significantly alter the trajectory of the second and third waves.
A fully fledged 2nd wave will be a medical nightmare conjuring up images of a deadly surge of infections.
This is what happened with the Spanish Flu, after the first world war when a second wave proved more deadlier than the first.
As we prepare to celebrate the festive season, we run the risk of dancing with death, should we choose to discard lockdown rules which kept the lethal virus in check.
In a dense environment with no adherence to safety regulations, the spread of infections will increase exponentially with severe consequences for the nation.
* Farouk Araie, Johannesburg.
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media.
Cape Argus
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