UK braces for coronavirus shut down as London stations close

[snoop1130]

UK braces for coronavirus shut down as London stations close

By Guy Faulconbridge, Sarah Young

 

People queue outside a supermarket in Watford, Britain March 19, 2020. REUTERS/Paul Childs

 

LONDON (Reuters) - The United Kingdom was bracing on Thursday for the virtual shut down of London as underground train stations across the capital closed and Prime Minister Boris Johnson mulled tougher measures to tackle the coronavirus crisis.

 

As the coronavirus outbreak sweeps across the world, governments, companies and investors are grappling with the biggest public health crisis since the 1918 influenza pandemic, panicked populations and imploding financial markets.

 

After ordering the closure of schools across a country that casts itself as a pillar of Western stability, Johnson on Wednesday said the government was ruling nothing out when asked whether he would bring in measures to lock down London.

 

Johnson has asked the government to come up with plans for a so-called lockdown which would see businesses closed, transport services reduced, gatherings limited and more stringent controls imposed on the population of one Europe’s richest city.

 

Pressed at a news conference whether tougher measures were needed to shut down London where bars, public transport and businesses remain busy, Johnson said: “We’ve always said we’re going to do the right measures at the right time.”

 

London’s transport authority said it would close up to 40 underground train stations until further notice and prepared to cut down other services including buses and trains, including the whole of the Waterloo & City line.

 

“People should not be travelling, by any means, unless they really, really have to,” London Mayor Sadiq Khan said.

 

Buckingham Palace announced on Thursday that Queen Elizabeth had agreed to postpone the planned state visit by Japanese Emperor Naruhito in June.

 

Britain has so far reported 104 deaths from coronavirus and 2,626 confirmed cases.

 

As the world’s fifth largest economy comes to a standstill, the pound on Wednesday plunged to its lowest level since March 1985, barring levels seen during a freak “flash crash” in October 2016. On Thursday the pound was down 0.5% at $1.1570.

 

Supermarkets have been forced to limit purchases after frantic shoppers stripped shelves. Outside one Sainsbury’s supermarket in central London on Thursday, a huge queue had formed ahead of opening, with people standing calmly in the rain, Reuters video showed.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-03-19

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[nobodysfriend]

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Johnson said: “We’ve always said we’re going to do the right measures at the right time.”

You said this ... but is that what you've done ?  I doubt it , at least the timing was bad ... should have begun much earlier .

[justin case]

I remember when I was younger what politicians used to say in home country:

 

we will face the problem, when it arise

 

so, do nothing, don't prepare anything in advance

 

 

wait, they did this in Europe, a few weeks ago...

[TopDeadSenter]

1 minute ago, rhyddid said:

This man shall be charged with manslaughter, once he said be ready to say good bye to the loved one and did not want to close, nothing, is insanity is even worst of his hairs !

I suspect sensible world leaders are allowing Corona to spread in their countries. Reason being it's ultimately better for a few terminally ill people to die than for capitalism to end and usher in an era of Mad Max-esque anarchy which will cause hundreds of millions to die either brutally or by starvation. Get this flu over and done with, and let's get on with life.

[VocalNeal]

 

[englishoak]

 

The teams behind the Chief Scientific Advisor are extraordinary. They are genuinely the world leaders in their fields, and they are ridiculously good at their jobs.

They aren’t googling the answers, or parroting a line that they just heard from a pushy presenter on TV. The plans for this stuff are incredibly comprehensive, and help a government to act decisively, and at the right time.

 

So much in response is about timing – and too soon can be more dangerous than too late. Look at the second (winter) wave of Spanish flu (graph from CDC) That long game is what they - the experts are considering now. Pictures of smiling Chinese people removing masks are propaganda, not science. That’s designed to cause an emotional response, and not in your interests Success of early containment can only be judged in years.

 

We – in the UK, right now, are doing incredibly well considering. We’ll protect our vulnerable best by responding promptly when the time is right, and the people who hold that responsibility deserve our trust and our support. That takes guts. I know that. Now, more than ever.

Government scientists, advisors and staff also have families, elderly relatives, the immunocompromised. They aren’t automatons, they feel that weight of responsibility. Party politics simply doesn’t come into it. It just doesn’t. So don’t pander to it, or point score.

 

 If your knowledge of the subject of pandemic is such that to understand the history of Spanish Flu you need to google it, then your dissent, because you are scared, has only one place. Your inner monologue. Keep it to yourself.

 

Be brave. Read up on the .gov advice. Listen and do as asked.

 

This is even more important than if you have a following for reasons other than your lack of viral expertise, so, some simple advice: Shut the <deleted> up, you are scaring people.

 

People like Piers Morgan might have a voice, but they’d kill us all if we listened to it. Mute them.

 

Lastly, don’t feel bad about being scared. I’ve been scared, many times, don’t mind admitting it. Turn off and mute the noise of those who seek personal gain by instilling fear and doubt in others or those that pander and promote the worst in us. Be Kind.

 

So, look after each other, particularly those who are less able and more at risk. Look after yourselves, your own mental as well as your physical health. Follow the science.

 

Wash your hands.

 

The last line above is THE most important thing anyone can do ..