Corona Daily 455: Let’s Keep Fighting

On Friday, 8 May, a UN resolution was expected to usher in a new era.

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Antonio Gutteress, the UN secretary general, had proposed a global ceasefire on 23 March. The pandemic is expected to last between two and three years. While it lasts, let us focus on this common enemy by stopping all wars and conflicts.  ‘The fury of the virus illustrates the folly of war’, he said.

Surprisingly, many armed groups supported the truce proposal. By early April, fighters in twelve countries shelved their arms. They included a communist guerrilla group in Philippines, liberation armies in Columbia and Sudan. (South Sudan, the world’s newest nation, has 12 million people and 4 ventilators.) A Saudi Arabia-led coalition and the Houthi rebels declared ceasefire for two weeks.  Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen jointly appealed for a halt to all fighting in the Middle East. Currently 310 million children in the conflict zones are deprived of school meals, their main source of nutrition, due to school closures.

On 30 March, 53 countries issued a letter supporting the Global Ceasefire proposal. France was the only nuclear nation to sign it. Encouraged by the letter, Antonio Gutteress reissued an appeal on 3 April.

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Friday marked the 75^th anniversary of the end of WWII. The five victors- USA, China, Russia, UK and France formed an exclusive nuclear club. They also gave themselves veto, a power as dangerous as nuclear weapons. Thanks to that power, USA and UK allowed apartheid to continue in South Africa for 44 years, Israel’s land grabbing is protected by the USA, and Russia vetoes resolutions against Assad. These five countries are authorized to invade, slaughter, carry out genocide and nuclear-bomb nations with such impunity that the UN charter doesn’t even allow a resolution condemning them.

The Global Ceasefire proposal, therefore, needed the support of the big bullies.  

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The USA (read Trump) initially insisted the resolution must include ‘Wuhan virus’ in the text. It was duly rejected. After four weeks of virtual talks and several drafts, USA asked to remove references to the World Health Organisation. In this election year, WHO is Trump’s enemy no. 2. WHO has failed to confirm, as Trump would like them to, that the virus originated in a Chinese lab.

China and Russia said they would veto if references to WHO are excluded.

France, along with Tunisia, is the sponsor of this resolution. France persisted and developed a compromise. Reaching a compromise through international Zoom meetings is not easy. On Thursday, the final draft included the wording ‘UN specialized health agencies’. The Chinese and Russians approved it, since in their mind they read this as WHO. The negotiating Americans found the wording acceptable because WHO was not mentioned. Late evening on 7 May, Americans approved the final draft. On Friday, it would be placed before the Security Council for a vote, simply a technicality.

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On Friday, 8 May, USA used its veto power and blocked the resolution. It said “UN specialized health agencies was an indirect reference to WHO".

WWII continues to haunt us.

Ravi

Corona Daily 456: The Journey Home

Dhan, Nirlesh, Buddharaj, Rabendra, Dharmendra and Pradeep were siblings or cousins, all belonging to the Singh Gond family. The family hailed from Umaria in India’s state of Madhya Pradesh. Aged 22 to 35, they were all married, and four of them had children. With frequent droughts, large families can no longer survive on farming. The young men had bribed a middleman to get themselves a job in SRJ Steels at Jalna. Jalna is about a 1000 km from Umaria. Returning home once a year, the Sing Gond cousins had become part of India’s 40 million circular migrants.

They worked at the steel factory, but not for it. The steel factory avoided employing them to stay clear of all labour laws. A contractor paid each of them a daily wage of Rs 450 (6 $). Twenty of them rented a room, and tried to save something to send to their families regularly.

On 24 March, India announced a lockdown for three weeks. The next day the steel factory closed, and the daily wages stopped. On 1 April, the slum landlord demanded rent. The lockdown became chronic, only changing the end-date every time. The cousins kept assuring their wives they would return home. There was nothing to do in Jalna.

All trains and buses had stopped plying. The media was full of horror stories of migrants walking for miles on India’s highways in the blistering April heat.

Umaria was 1000 km away, and the Singh Gond cousins, though fit and young, wouldn’t contemplate walking that distance.

In May, the government announced special trains for labourers. The train from Aurangabad would take them to their village. And Aurangabad was 60 km away. Buddharaj, the only tech-savvy cousin, tried to apply for e-passes. But there was no response.

Their contractor disappeared, both his phones disconnected. That is when the Singh Gond cousins and their co-villagers decided they had had enough. If they must live without jobs and money, they were better off being with their families. On Thursday, 7 May, they called their families to give the good news.

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Twenty of them started walking on the railway tracks and covered 40 km in the night. Why rail tracks? You can’t lose your way, if you go the way the train goes. Living on survival food for a month, they didn’t realize how exhausting the journey could be. At three in the morning, they decided to take a nap. Aurangabad was another 20 km away. They would get up in the morning, and walk the rest. Well in time to catch the train. They slept on the wooden planks between the rail tracks. There was no chance of a train coming. No trains had run for more than six weeks.

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They never woke up. An empty goods train ran on the same track at 05.15 that morning. Three of the group had slept away from the tracks. They survived to tell the story. 17 died. 

India’s Prime minister tweeted his anguish- in English. BBC and CNN reported their deaths. The states offered Rs 1.5 million ($ 20000) compensation. On 8 May, their lifeless limbs were taken to their villages – by the same train they had tried so hard to catch.

Ravi

Corona Daily 457: Prisons Change People

New York’s governor Cuomo objects to the term ‘shelter-in-place’ used by some American states. That term implies a shooter on a rampage. Cuomo prefers to give ‘stay-at-home’ orders. Without caring for semantics, most of the world uses the word ‘lockdown’. Lockdown is part of prison vocabulary. Currently, nearly 4 billion people, half of the world, is locked down, essentially held prisoners.

True, this is house arrest, or home confinement, a milder form. Some countries use smart phones to tag and monitor people - mandatory in China, anonymously aggregated in Belgium, and voluntary in South Korea.

In a sense, our confinement is worse than the traditional prisoner’s. We have been punished without a trial for no crime of ours. We have been confined without an end date, our term indefinite. Inmates are fed by the State in prison. Here, we have to fend for ourselves, try and get enough supplies for our families. The mask is a constant reminder of our situation.

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Yesterday, I wrote about a Russian billionaire who committed suicide because he was unable to cope with the situation. It is useful to know the research that studies the way prisons change people. I will mention a few highlights.

It is shown the most damaging factor for prisoners is the loss of their life in the outside world, rather than the prison conditions. When first-time prisoners start their sentence, life becomes sedentary; they stop physical exercise, sit or lie in bed for more than 9 hours a day, don’t know what to do with the hours-time passes very slowly. The first month is marked by a preoccupation with safety, a sense of losing freedom and control, feeling of uncertainty, separation and loss. They can easily give up drinking and smoking. All other worries are so overwhelming in their mind they don’t miss sex. But they miss physical human warmth. (Hugging, kissing, handholding).

The process of adapting is called ‘prisonisation’. That process is filled with chronic stress and sleep disturbance. It can affect certain brain functions, such as planning, attention, working memory. After three months of imprisonment, there may be significant deterioration in self-control and attention.

Longer imprisonment may lead to emotional withdrawal, depression, suicidal thoughts or actions, increasing hostility, delusions, panic, madness, phobias, substance abuse and self-destructive behavior. A long imprisonment alters the prisoner for ever. As one ex-prisoner said: “I act like I’m still in prison, I mean you are not a light switch or a water faucet. You can’t just turn something off. When you’ve done something for a certain amount of time, it becomes part of you.”

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Worldwide governments need to take lessons from this, and ensure the confinement doesn’t become too long. In order to save the vulnerable, we don’t want nations becoming mental asylums.

And as individuals, we should be aware of such studies, so that we can avoid the pitfalls of confinement.

Ravi

Corona Daily 458: The Russian Oligarch

Dmitry Bosov’s estate lies in an area known as Rublyovka, a 40 minute drive from the Kremlin. These forests were popular hunting grounds with the Russian Tsars. Every ruler from Lenin, Stalin to Putin has had his official residence here. Rublyovka is a billionaires’ ghetto. Some of the world’s costliest houses are located here. When the oligarchs shop at the Barvikha luxury village, purchases include not just Prada and Gucci, but also a Bentley or a Maserati.

Dmitry Bosov, 52, is among the Russian $-billionaires. His house stands on a 5-hectare (50,000 sq meters) plot. The gigantic place has a gated, camera-observed driveway, leading to a spacious car park. The house is surrounded by grassy lawns, swimming pools, a spa, a Russian sauna, gardens, mature trees, thick hedges, a fitness center and an ice hockey ground. In May, with spring gradually journeying towards summer, the surroundings are fresh and lively. Bosov lives a short walk from President Putin’s dacha. In 2016, he sponsored a hockey league in which Putin and he played together.

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This year, the start of the Moscow lockdown coincided with Bosov’s birthday. A coal baron, he had to cancel his grand birthday celebrations.

Like any Russian oligarch, Bosov has conflicts in business and family, problems with booze and insomnia, but he has had them for the past thirty years. In January this year, he bought a multi-million mansion in Beverly Hills, for an occasional change of weather. But now he can’t travel to California, not even in his private jet. Coal prices are falling. But his biggest concern as he discussed with friends is that the pandemic will cause such poverty in Russia that the poor will revolt.

In the 1917 revolution, it was not just the Tsar’s family that was assassinated. Several aristocrats were killed, and each bedroom from their grand apartments was given to individual families to conceive the Soviet communal apartments. Worried, Bosov re-checked the CCTV cameras, the gates, and began carrying his pistol on his person. Last week, on 30 April, Russia’s Prime Minister Mishustin, whom Bosov knows well, tested positive. The Russian numbers have crossed 150,000, with 1500 dead. Every day 10,000 more cases are springing up.

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Yesterday, on 6 May, Katerina, Bosov’s wife, called him over the phone. When you live on a 5-hectare plot, you need phones to find your family. After several unsuccessful calls, she went to security and began checking the CCTV footage. It showed Bosov entering the fitness center in the night. Katerina and the guard rushed to it. The door, locked from inside, had to be forced open. Dmitry Bosov, the billionaire, was found dead on the floor, with a bullet in his head. His Glock 17 Gen 4 was lying next to him. No suicide note was found anywhere.

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It is likely thousands of super-poor will die in the pandemic. The case of the Russian oligarch shows it can claim some super-rich as well.

Ravi

Corona Daily 459: Professor Lockdown

On 5 May, 51-year old Professor Neil Ferguson, the UK’s most influential epidemiologist, scientist and architect of the UK lockdown resigned as a government advisor.

Prof Ferguson has more than twenty years of experience with pathogen outbreaks. His predictions have not always been accurate. In 2001, during the foot and mouth outbreak, he said 150,000 could die. Based on his advice, as a precaution, 6 million animals were slaughtered. In the end 200 people died. For his Foot and Mouth models, he was bestowed with the Order of the British Empire (OBE). During the 2002 Mad Cow outbreak, Ferguson feared up to 50,000 might die. 177 died. In the 2005 bird flu epidemic, Ferguson estimated 200 million could die. 282 died. In the 2009 Swine flu epidemic, he predicted 65,000 deaths. Final figure was 457. Epidemiology is not an exact science. Prof Ferguson has candidly said he doesn’t own a crystal ball. His track record was not the reason for his resignation.

Professor Ferguson is a deemed Patient Zero in Westminster. At 5 pm on March 17, he had a speech at 10 Downing Street. He greeted Boris Johnson and his cabinet (perhaps by shaking hands), gave his revolutionary speech and left. Next morning he woke up with a high fever and dry cough. On 19 March, he tested positive. On 26 March, PM Johnson, UK’s health secretary Hancock and Chief Medical Officer Whitty tested positive. By 30 March, half of the cabinet was infected. Johnson nearly died. But this suspicion of being the pioneer transmitter did not cause his resignation.

Before his revolutionary speech at Downing Street, UK had focused on ‘herd immunity’. Instead of suppression it relies on developing mass immunity by facing the music. Prof Ferguson singlehandedly changed it. He presented models which showed 510,000 British citizens could die, unless a strict lockdown is implemented. Not only did UK reverse its strategy, inspired by the Ferguson figures; France, USA and Germany went for strict lockdowns. PhDs from Oxford command worldwide respect. Based on the professor’s advice, Johnson addressed the nation on 30 March. He recommended the strictest lockdown. “You should not be meeting friends. If your friends ask you to meet, say no. You should not meet family members who don’t live in your home.” Aptly Neil Ferguson is nicknamed Professor Lockdown. He managed to put 66 million Brits under house arrest.

This week, the Telegraph revealed Prof Ferguson’s 38-year old lover has been visiting him secretly. Why can’t they live together, which is permissible under lockdown? They can’t. She lives with her husband and two children in another part of London. On 30 March, on BBC Today Prof Ferguson was telling the nation the criticality of a strict lockdown. Reportedly, when he was broadcasting, his lover was hiding in his bedroom.

The professor accepted he made an error of judgment. He deeply regretted undermining the clear social distancing message. He emphasized the government advice was unequivocal, it protects everyone. With that, he resigned.

Ravi 

Corona Daily 460: The Warren Buffett Annual

Born in August 1930, Warren Buffett often jokes he is the result of his parents being locked down at home in the Great Crash of 1929. Known as the world’s wisest investor, he was the world’s richest man in 2006 (currently fourth). His position has declined only because of his philanthropy. Until 2006, he didn’t have a mobile or a computer. Before 2013, he had sent just a single email in his life. Buffett insisted his children travel in economy class. ‘I want to give my kids just enough so they would feel they could do anything, but not so much they would feel like doing nothing.’ He famously said.

The Oracle of Omaha (his nickname coming from his birthplace) has survived WWII, the Cuban missile crisis, 11 September, the 2008 financial crisis, and on a personal level, cancer. He is a master showman. His words and actions are capable of shaking the financial world.

Buffett is the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. The AGM weekend is a busy affair in Omaha every summer. Downtown Hilton charges 700$ a night for the cheapest room. Last week, the Hilton room was 125$ with no takers. Around the AGM, the Omaha airport is packed with thousands of shareholders, super-rich all of them. (Before Corona, the share price had reached 347,000 $ per share, meaning you needed more than a million $ to buy just three shares of BRK-A. Now the prices have fallen by 20%. For a little over a million $, you can buy four shares). This year, the airport was empty. Every year, some 40,000 shareholders jostle to buy Berkshire Hathaway merchandise. This year there was no shopping, and no shoppers. Fearing some crazy shareholders would rush to Omaha anyway, the AGM venue was not disclosed.

The AGM on 2 May was supposed to be Bill Gates’ last meeting. He is leaving the board. But he didn’t attend. If you think Buffett, 89, is old, the deputy chairman, Charles Munger, is 96. They are partners for sixty years. (Munger didn’t attend because his age makes him vulnerable).

Buffett addressed shareholders online for over 4.5 hours. The American economic miracle will prevail, he said, as he says every year. But he admitted to selling all airline stocks. Since 2016, he had owned 10% of United, Delta, American and Southwest. Now he owns nothing. On Monday, promptly all airline stocks crashed.

America’s best days lie ahead, he said. But he admitted he had stopped investing currently. Despite his company sitting on 137 billion $ in cash. In 2008, a month after the crisis, he was buying big. Not this time.

He said this was the best time to be born in America. But his speech was atypically sober (or somber). The wisest investor said he doesn’t know what the market is going to do now.

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He admitted he hasn’t had a haircut for seven weeks. That was one line everyone understood and empathized with.

Buffett is known for always taking a long-term view. Short-term crises have never bothered him. His performance on 2 May, at the age of 89, suggested that perhaps his definition of long-term has changed.

Ravi

Corona Daily 461: To Spit or Not to Spit

India and China are the world champions when it comes to spitting in public. China’s Deng Xiaoping issued anti-spitting rules in 1980. Despite that, when he met international leaders, he had a spittoon placed near him. During the 2008 Olympics, Beijing tried to run an anti-spitting campaign (unsuccessfully). The Chinese still consider spitting acceptable and essential to clear the throat of dust and grit.

Indian democracy allows free speech and free spitting. Indians chew an exciting combination of tobacco and betel leaf, forcefully spitting out the remnants to splatter roads and walls. Like everything else in India, spitting is colorful.

The novel Corona virus is changing all that. Many Indian states have now imposed fines on spitting. Himachal Pradesh has introduced legislation treating spitting as an attempt to murder. The director of police clarified that if the recipient of the spit becomes infected and dies, the spitter will be charged with murder. Two reasons why nobody is charged so far. One is the masks, and second the unavailability of chewing tobacco.

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In the West, though, there is an epidemic of spitting. In Europe, New Zealand, USA people have been charged spitting on the police, on medical staff, on jailers. In New York jails, spiteful inmates are using it as a weapon, freely coughing and spitting on correction officers.

In the UK alone, several people were arrested and jailed to anything between three and eight months for spitting on the police. The culprits included men and women, Whites and Asians. In Saudi Arabia, a man who spat on the shopping trolley in a mall now faces death. (It seems he is alive only because the Saudis are discussing whether stoning him would be safer than beheading).

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Sport, though dysfunctional, is also affected in a big way. Soccer players spit more often than they score goals. FIFA is considering giving a yellow card to players spitting on the football field.

Cricket will may not have a T20 world cup this year. The sport’s fast bowlers routinely spit on the ball between deliveries. They then rub the saliva to bring shine to the ball in order to swing it. ICC, cricket’s international body, is now considering banning that practice. The ban may put an end to swing bowling.

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While lawmakers, law-enforcers and law-interpreters are busy sending spitters to jail, what are the scientists and health authorities doing?

Testing is known to be critical in this pandemic. The current test sticks a q-tip-like swab deep into your nose or throat, to retrieve a sample of mucus which may or may not contain the virus. This test is invasive and uncomfortable. Also the medical person needs to sit in close proximity to the individual to be tested.

Scientists at Rutgers University have now suggested spit samples instead of throat swabs. On 13 April, America’s Food and Drug Administration granted the spit-tests an accelerated emergency use authorization. If successful, all you have do is: spit a glob of saliva into a cup, close the lid and hand it over. Easier than giving a urine sample.

After declaring spitting a punishable offence, Governments may now have to ask billions to start spitting again.

Ravi

Corona Daily 462: Corona Fun Stories

News in pandemic times is not all gloom and doom. Some actually make us laugh.

Take the headline: ‘Corona beer stops production’. This is one of the bestselling Mexican beers across the world. In two recent surveys in America, 38% beer drinkers said they would not buy this beer under any circumstances. 14% said they won’t buy it in public. Corona had planned to launch a new hard Seltzer in the USA last month. The promotion campaign said: ‘introducing Corona… four flavors. Coming to your place soon.’ For some reason, Americans criticized it.

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Not having experienced a pandemic before, politicians in different countries find original ways to impose restrictions. Congo locks down people for 4 days, then they can move around freely for 2 days, then locked down for four days again. Peru and Panama’s lockdowns are gender-based. Men can leave the house on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Women on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Nobody can go out on Sundays.

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New York’s Health Department has issued guidelines on how to enjoy sex in Covid-19 times. Since my Corona series has a wide readership, I refrain from giving a précis. If you are above 18, and think there is any practical utility, here is the NYC covid-sex-guidance. By way of warning, I would mention three points. (a) These guidelines are for New Yorkers, they may not apply to you. (b) The footnote says the NYC health department may change their advice as the situation evolves. (c) The safest way as prescribed by other sources is to keep a distance of at least six feet from your partner during the act.

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In April, an Indian couple named their newly born son: “Lockdown”. When the boy grows up, I can imagine mischievous reporters writing about ‘Lockdown in school’ or ‘Lockdown at State Bank of India’.

Talking about naming the baby, Boris Johnson and his fiancée Carrie Symonds had a baby boy this week. The mother and baby are doing very well; the father is also not doing badly. The upper class Brits give three names to the baby. Johnson himself is ‘Alexander Boris dePfeffel Johnson’.

Carrie wanted one of the names to be her grandfather’s. And Boris wanted one to be his grandfather’s.  Boris, in his usual nebulous way told her, ‘I want to name him after the two doctors who saved my life.’ And he left for his Zoom conference.

Two doctors? Which meant sacrificing one of the two grandfathers. And since Boris is the Prime Minister, it would be Carrie’s grandfather whose name would have to go. Carrie spent a few depressed hours before Boris returned.

‘I wish we could have named him after my grandfather.’ She said. ‘We will.’ Said Boris.

‘But you want to name him after your grandfather as well.’ ‘Yes, I do.’

‘And you want to name him after the two doctors who saved your life.’ ‘Yes, I do.’

‘How is that possible?’ she said.

‘We are naming him Wilfred (Boris’s grandfather) Lawrie (Carrie’s grandfather) Nicholas Johnson.’ Said Boris triumphantly. ‘Because the two doctors who treated me were Dr Nicholas Price and Dr Nicholas Heart.’

*****

Ravi

Corona Daily 463: American Couple at Sea: Part Final

If you feel this is an unending story, you are beginning to get some idea of the American couple’s feelings during the Japan quarantine.

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After the evacuated passengers reached the USA, Kent heard eleven passengers had tested positive.  The 300+ evacuees were transferred to US air force bases for another 14-day quarantine. By now the Diamond Princess warranted a special category in the daily reports of WHO and Worldometer.

In her 17 Feb interview taken by an American TV channel, Rebecca is seen depressed and frustrated. (As opposed to her optimistic, cheerful interview a week before). She blamed the US government for abandoning them. This was unacceptable, she said. As a result, she received another volley of abuse calling her selfish, one person describing the ship as a leper colony.

On 20 Feb, the Japanese health ministry announced the death of two passengers from Diamond Princess. An American channel interviewed Kent on Facetime. ‘It was so shocking to think this person had gone on a vacation and the next thing you know they’re dead. It just seemed so preventable.’ He said. That evening Rebecca and he chatted for a long time.

By now, the Diamond Princess resembled a ghost ship. Kent only saw crew members at meal times. Sometimes they forgot he was still on board. On 22 Feb. he was among the last passengers to leave the ship. The American embassy was no longer contactable. In Tokyo, Kent was on his own.

He went to Rebecca’s hospital, but was denied permission to enter. She came to the window of her room, and they talked on Facetime. In the next two weeks, Kent had to move hotels twice. This was part of the post-ship 14-day quarantine. On learning he came from the Diamond Princess, two hotels asked him to leave.

On 4 March, a month after the last date of their cruise, Kent and Rebecca finally met. They decided to celebrate their reunion by visiting Disneyland, Tokyo. Online they found Disneyland was shut to prevent the spread of the virus. Finally, they left for the airport, psychologically prepared to serve another two-week quarantine after arriving in the USA.

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Post-script: Cruise liners are a big part of the tourism industry carrying 26 million passengers annually. At any given point, 314 cruise ships worldwide carry more than 500,000 passengers and nearly 200,000 crew workers.

Diamond Princess has had 712 cases and 14 deaths so far. Over 40 ships have had confirmed positive cases. 70 passengers have died so far.

At the time of writing this, more than 100,000 crew members are trapped in ships with outbreaks, with little access to medical help, without pay and no end date for their confinement.

Nobody needs to hurry to book their next cruise vacation.

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Ravi

Corona Daily 464: American Couple at Sea: Part III

From his cabin, Kent had a magnificent view of Mount Fuji and the open seas. Now the ship had turned, and Rebecca was gone. Kent could only see an ugly port filled with ambulances and men in sci-fi type suits.

The quarantined passengers soon formed a Facebook group. Unfortunately, it was flooded with complaints and conspiracy theories. Kent used the FB messenger to chat with Rebecca. They exchanged pictures of their meals. Kent could opt for stir fry with chicken or stir fry with tofu. At the Tokyo hospital, Rebecca was given fish, rice and pickles. She was feeling all right, but was told she would be there for at least 14 days. She had stopped talking to doctors and nurses, who spoke only Japanese. Kent and Rebecca started getting nasty messages on their Facebook walls, asking them not to come back and spread the virus among innocent Americans.

On 9 February, Jan Swartz, CEO of the shipping company, promised the passengers a full refund and a free cruise in the future. Also during the quarantine booze became free.

The passengers learned more about their ship from CNN than from their captain. When Rebecca had left for the hospital, Diamond Princess had 61 cases. In a week the number had grown to 285. Kent heard some of his neighbors recording messages on their phones. Spencer Fehrenbacher, a 29-year old from Vancouver, had recorded: “If you’re seeing this video, I have tested positive for the Coronavirus and am being taken to a Japanese hospital somewhere. I’m making this video just as a way of saying ‘hi’, saying, you know, ‘I love you’ to my family and friends, and just making this in advance in case I don’t have time to…in case.”

Kent formed a WhatsApp group with twenty others he had met at the Quiz Time. The group took it upon themselves to procure fresh towels and bed-linen. Service of any sort was hard to come by.

The ship had more than 400 Americans. On 16 February, an American rescue team arrived. This was the first mission in US history where American citizens would be evacuated from a cruise ship, amid an epidemic outbreak. Each American was identified from the ship’s manifest and spoken to. Kent could not see the person, but an official American accent was promising.

‘My wife is in a Tokyo hospital. I hope you can evacuate us both.’ He said.

‘We are not allowed to take anyone from the hospital. But you…’

‘I will not leave without my wife. I would appreciate if you can send me to Tokyo. I have tested negative. I would like to be closer to my wife, and not here. I am losing my mind.’

‘Let me check,’ said the voice. ‘Mr Frazer, your quarantine counter was reset when your wife tested positive. Until 21 February, you are not allowed to leave the ship, I am sorry.’

Later, Kent saw from his cabin more than 300 Americans in masks leaving in buses for the airport. (To be continued…)

Ravi