Coronavirus Italy: Living in the Red Zone
The world seems to have come to a halt in Italy due to the coronavirus.
Just the other day the Italian Prime Minister Conte announced that most of the northern regions were under lockdown.
This has shaken us hard, we weren’t expecting that.
Giving the raising of the infected people and the gravity of the situation, it was necessary.
With 16 million people soon to be under lockdown, chaos ensued.
General Panic & Riots
A lot of workers and students from the south of the country stormed the train stations, trying to catch the last train to escape the Red Zones and go back to their hometowns.
A massive sea of foolish people that just contributed to the further spreading of the virus. Authorities struggled to identify them at the arrival to the destination and many ran away, without identification.
But perhaps the most unsettling event is prison riots that totally overwhelmed the Police force.
Family visits were canceled to prevent coronavirus contagion, but this has led to riots in more than a dozen prisons around the country, with inmates managing to escape.
It was especially frightening when I found out that one of them was very close to my city.
Extention of the Red Zone
Today it has been announced that the whole country is under quarantine.
A necessary move, given that the number of infected has skyrocketed to 7985 cases.
How it got started
Honestly, a lot has changed since the last time I wrote about the coronavirus.
At that time there were just 2 recorded cases that have been isolated in Rome.
There was a lot of hysteria, with a lot of Chinese people being assaulted on the streets, but not much risk of contagion.
The situation has quickly changed due to the mismanagement of a few key factors:
- People weren’t properly checked at the border and airports
In fact, one Italian friend of mine that was coming back from Shanghai changed her flight in Germany, wasn’t even checked once arrived in Italy. - Sick People didn’t seek medical attention in time, like the Italian Unilever manager that unfortunately eventually started the spreading of the virus in Lombardy.
- The medical staff wasn’t prepared. Few patients who contracted the virus were sent home without a diagnosis.
- Carelessness: infected patience went to the hospital and infected others. Also many treated the quarantine as a vacation, going to touristic and crowded areas.
How is living in under Quarantine
I’ve never seen anything like this before, the general panic for the coronavirus has brought forth the worse from people.
I took this picture from my local supermarket.
The craze has driven people to stack up on basic good and hand sanitizers, that are now unpurchasable.
People are not allowed to leave their city unless it’s for work. Schools, Universities, Museums, and all the public gatherings are closed until the 4th of April. Date by which we hope the situation will be under control.
Bars and restaurants are mostly closed and the few still open are only allowed between 8 am to 6 pm, with a 1-meter distance between costumers.
For those who are not sick, fear is the major factor.
I see people going around and looking at others as a possible threat. Whenever I hear a sneeze or cough, my heart skips a little.
But in all this, I try to keep my calm. Panic only leads to irrational decisions. I would love to go and see my parents too, like the people who stormed the train stations, but it would only put them in greater danger.
It’s kinda ironic that at first, a lot of racist Italians were blaming and hurting the Chinese people. Now that the other nations are treating Italians the same way they did to Chinese, Italians are protesting against the unfair treatment.
Racism just amplifies the problem.
I’ve seen many politicians on social media criticizing and blaming one another on how to handle the situation, instead of actually working together for a solution.
The blaming game doesn’t solve anything.
I feel like in a time of crisis like this, the most important thing is cooperation and empathy.
Because the virus doesn’t discriminate.
It does not care about race, gender, the rich or poor.
It affects us all.
We must find a common answer to a common threat.
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