Facebook | Cristina Higgins
An Italian woman who is at the heart of the coronavirus outbreak in her country has penned an emotional Facebook post that urges people to not take the virus lightly.
She says that social media hasn’t captured the severity of what is happening in Italy. She wants to warn Americans and those in other countries to take precautions before it is too late.
In Christina Higgin’s heartbreaking post on Facebook, she eloquently explains how and why America shouldn’t make light of making the necessary preparations to slow down the coronavirus spread.
Here is her post in its entirety:
I am writing to you from Bergamo, Italy, at the heart of the coronavirus crisis. The news media in the US has not captured the severity of what is happening here. I am writing this post because each of you, today, not the government, not the school district, not the mayor, each individual citizen has the chance, today to take actions that will deter the Italian situation from becoming your own country’s reality. The only way to stop this virus is to limit contagion. And the only way to limit contagion is for millions of people to change their behavior today.
If you are in Europe or the US you are weeks away from where we are today in Italy.
I can hear you now. “It’s just a flu. It only affects old people with preconditions”
There are 2 reasons why Coronavirus has brought Italy to it’s knees. First it is a flu is devastating when people get really sick they need weeks of ICU – and, second, because of how fast and effectively it spreads. There is 2 week incubation period and many who have it never show symptoms.
When Prime Minister Conte announced last night that the entire country, 60 million people, would go on lock down, the line that struck me most was “there is no more time.” Because to be clear, this national lock down, is a hail mary. What he means is that if the numbers of contagion do not start to go down, the system, Italy, will collapse.
Why? Today the ICUs in Lombardy are at capacity – more than capacity. They have begun to put ICU units in the hallways. If the numbers do not go down, the growth rate of contagion tells us that there will be thousands of people who in a matter of a week? two weeks? who will need care. What will happen when there are 100, or a 1000 people who need the hospital and only a few ICU places left?
On Monday a doctor wrote in the paper that they have begun to have to decide who lives and who dies when the patients show up in the emergency room, like what is done in war. This will only get worse.
There are a finite number of drs, nurses, medical staff and they are getting the virus. They have also been working non-stop, non-stop for days and days. What happens when the drs, nurses and medical staff are simply not able to care for the patients, when they are not there?
And finally for those who say that this is just something that happens to old people, starting yesterday the hospitals are reporting that younger and younger patients – 40, 45, 18, are coming in for treatment.
You have a chance to make a difference and stop the spread in your country. Push for the entire office to work at home today, cancel birthday parties, and other gatherings, stay home as much as you can. If you have a fever, any fever, stay home. Push for school closures, now. Anything you can do to stop the spread, because it is spreading in your communities – there is a two week incubation period – and if you do these things now you can buy your medical system time.
And for those who say it is not possible to close the schools, and do all these other things, locking down Italy was beyond anyone’s imagination a week ago.
Soon you will not have a choice, so do what you can now.
Please share.
Americans seem more concerned about flu symptom relief than the current coronavirus scare. This might change over the next few weeks as the virus becomes more widespread.
Related: Tom Hanks Tests Positive for Coronavirus and More COVID-19 Updates
After spending 60 years together, an Italian couple died just two hours apart on Tuesday morning from coronavirus.
Luigi Carrara, 86, and Severa Belotti, 82, died in their hometown of Albino after spending their final days in lockdown. Their son, Luca Carrara, said that his parents were confined for 8 days in their home without medical assistance.
Luca is angry about what happened to his parents. He told local newspaper Corriere della Sera that he wasn’t able to be with his parents. “They died alone, that’s how this virus works,” he said.
“Your loved ones are left alone and you can’t even say goodbye, hug them, try to give them some comfort. [You can’t even tell them] a good lie like, ‘Everything will be fine.'”
Luca is currently under quarantine with his wife and two children. He urged people to not take the coronavirus lightly.
“People have to understand that they have to stay home because it is okay for them to keep saying that the victims are just old, but when it happens to their parents, it’s really difficult.”
Related: World Health Organization Declares Coronavirus Outbreak a Pandemic
After coronavirus deaths in Italy jumped from 196 to 827 in just 24 hours, all non-essential shops have been closed.
A top Italian doctor has also suggested that an age limit should be placed on hospital beds. This would help prioritize medical resources. The number of those who have contracted the virus has risen to 12,000 in their country. There are over 23,000 cases in Europe.
