The recent pandemic outbreak has caused people to resort to stockpiling essentials in their houses, creating a shortage of many goods in various places. And the lack of toilet paper in supermarkets is definitely one of the most obvious results of the panic. But people are not the only species that have decided to secure the precious product.

A kangaroo was spotted in a public loo in New South Wales trying to get some toilet paper. The footage, captured by Fiona Schubert, shows the little creature trying to get it from the roll, and the roo is so focused on the job at hand that it doesn't even react to the presences of humans nearby. Well, let's hope that wild animals don't begin to storm supermarkets together with people, trying to get certain goods.

 

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Read from top. Bunnings is still opened to the public. No wildlife allowed though.

The development comes as the number of COVID-19 cases has risen to more than 150,000 around the world. Europe has become the epicentre of the pandemic, with most of the cases now being reported there rather than in China, where the virus originated.

The sports giant Nike has announced that it will close all its retail stores across the globe, including in the United States, starting from next week amid the coronavirus pandemic. Nike said that the measure is needed to stop the spread of the disease.

"The well-being of our teammates and consumers is our top priority so we have decided to close our stores in multiple countries around the world including in the United States. We are taking additional steps in other Nike-managed facilities, including the option to work from home, staggered work schedules, social distancing and additional safety and cleaning steps to help protect and support our teammates", the company explained in a memo.

Nike said that the stores will be closed through 27 March. At the same time, the company revealed that it wouldn’t close its stores in Japan, South Korea, or in most of China.

Social media users received the news with scepticism, with some saying that closing the stores for 12 days won’t help the situation.

 

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See also:

http://www.yourdemocracy.net.au/drupal/node/37159

Spring Break Miami now has a buzz-killing curfew — courtesy of the coronavirus.

Officials are closing the most popular city beaches at 5 p.m. daily to keep partying college students from spreading the contagion, Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber and City Manager Jimmy Morales announced Saturday.

The move is one in a host of measures the city is taking to limit large gatherings.

“It would be irresponsible for us not to limit crowd sizes in these public areas. Not only for our residents and visitors, but for the health and safety of our first responders,” Gelber said in a statement.

Miami Beach has also banned restaurants and nightclubs from hosting more than 250 people at a time and has reopened sections of Ocean Drive that are typically closed to accommodate larger spring break crowds.

Police will be deployed to enforce the beach curfew between Seventh and Tenth Streets, with officers also stopping large groups from gathering at the beachfront Lummus Park...

 

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https://nypost.com/2020/03/14/miami-beaches-close-early-to-keep-spring-b...

 

 

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Translated by Albert Ratingaher (son of Gunter)

An interview with John Ziebuhr, one of Germany's top virologists is of interest, in particular in regard to the percentage of infected people by the coronavirus Covid-19:


SPIEGEL: Among other things, the Chancellor warned that 60 to 70 percent of people in Germany will become infected. How does this number come about?

Ziebuhr: By a basic rule that actually always applies. We currently assume that every infected person in a society without immunity, as we currently have it, infects three other people on average. The spread of the virus can only be stopped if each infected person infects less than another person. If two thirds of the population were in contact with the virus and are therefore immune, two of the three people whom everyone would infect fall away. The virus will then continue to circulate, but will no longer find people who can be infected in large numbers. At least that's the theory.

Note from the translator: from what I understand from various sources, once you have overcome an infection, you are indeed immune, but only for a few weeks, 4 to 8 weeks.


SPIEGEL: But that also means that the virus will spread extremely widely, no matter how much we restrict our everyday lives.

Ziebuhr: Yes. The only question is in what time. Does it happen within six months, twelve, or does it take longer? The measures are designed to slow the outbreak as much as possible. This makes a lot of sense so that our actually well-functioning hospital system does not collapse due to the large number of patients who have to be treated in the intensive care unit. This is currently a real danger.

SPIEGEL: One hope was that the warmth in summer could stop the spread of the virus to some extent. How do you see that?

Ziebuhr: Almost all respiratory viruses occur significantly less in summer, and corona viruses are also sensitive to heat and UV radiation. The cases should therefore reduce in summer. The present outbreak is an exceptional situation because hardly anyone is immune. Even if fewer viruses are on the move, there can be enough to infect a relatively large proportion of the population.

SPIEGEL: This also means that we not only have to do without football games and concerts for a week or two, but that this situation can drag on for months.

Ziebuhr: That is likely. We currently have to look from day to day. If we are lucky, the number of newly infected people will decrease when we get into the summer. Then maybe we can relax the measures a bit. Until then, we have to stick to the plan to delay the virus as much as possible.

SPIEGEL: What does the future look like after the outbreak? Could it be that the virus will go away at some point if enough people are immune?

Ziebuhr: I think that is very unlikely. Based on the parallelism with other corona viruses and due to the large number of those currently infected, it can be assumed that it will no longer be possible to completely eliminate this virus. Even if a large proportion of the population worldwide becomes infected and builds up immunity to the virus, it will subside within a few years. Even so, the virus will always find unprotected people, especially children.

SPIEGEL: Why children of all people?

Ziebuhr: All (most) babies are born with disease immunity from their mother. This is relative and only offers short-term protection for a few months. Small children therefore have to develop immunity to all the various viruses that occur in humans in their first years of life. Children are therefore usually the first victims of most respiratory viruses. Fortunately, infections with Sars-CoV-2 (Covid-19) and many other cold viruses are relatively mild for them.

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The coronavirus has claimed the Bunnings sausage.

The retailer has suspended all sausage sizzles and will instead be donating gift cards to community groups that had pre-booked the popular fundraiser.

The coronavirus had made it increasingly difficult for Bunnings to attract volunteers and maintain a steady supply of meat, contributing to its decision to suspend all sausage sizzles as of Wednesday.

“Having listened closely to community groups, we’ve learned of the challenges many groups are facing finding volunteers and even supplies to sell given some of the reported challenges being faced by other retailers,” Bunnings Managing Director Mike Schneider said in a statement.

“We also want to make sure our team remain focused on helping customers to access the products they need,” Mr Schneider said...

 

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https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/2020/03/18/bunnings-sausage-sizzles-susp...

 

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