Wuhan virus.

[saundra]

You have got to laugh a friend in Wales just sent me a message on the 28th of March at 8o'clock stand out side and clap and cheer to support your NHS now if I do so that neighbours will send for men in white coats

[Suff]

Facts are one thing, sensationalising those facts to create a story is another thing entirely and totally unacceptable.

True. First it is unacceptable, second, where are they going to go when it really kicks off and things go down the drain? Howling from the rooftops?

This article, however, is worth a read.

If we have a good look at the numbers ourselves, we can see some patterns which are emerging. But not reported.

Luxumburg has more people per million infected than Italy and is, today, increasing new cases faster than the UK.

Switzerland has almost the same per million infected as Italy and is still rising very fast. They have less dead than the UK but the numbers are rising quickly. It was not so long ago that they were in single digits. +30 dead today.

I've been battling panic and restrictions to get my son out of Argentina. The idiot has let his passport expire for so long it's making it difficult for me to even get him moved. I now have a flight for him to get to BA and the embassy on Wednesday, but I'm going to have to sweet talk to the embassy in BA to give him some authorisation to travel inside Argentina just to get him to BA and the Embassy. Once there I'm going to have to work with the Embassy to get him emergency travel documents, something I can't do online as you need a valid passport in order to get emergency travel docs. More hurdles.

I'll be booking a hotel for him in BA once I get a clearer idea from the Embassy as to how long it will take to get him documented. Then I'll also book a flight out of Argentina. No BA direct flights though. It seems they are leveraging Iberia more and more for that and the last place I want him to try and transit with temp documents is Spain.

It is just as well part of my job is negotiation, bargaining and manipulation of people to get my own way... No matter the level of idiocy you face, losing it is not an option.

We'll get there. I suppose it just depends on how much of a hole it will burn in my wallet. I failed, twice, with Expedia to get a flight to BA for him. They kept taking money for flights which were cancelled. In the end I had to go onto the Spanish language LATM site in order to be able to book a flight and whilst I do speak some Spanish, I had to do a lot of Google translation. I'm down £1,000 now with some £700 to come back between 72 hours and 30 days.

In the meantime I have no idea if he has enough money to pay the hostel he is staying in and I can't get him any money. Although the Embassy did say they would try and help me with that if they could.

Whiskey this weekend I think!

[saundra]

No gosh stuff what a nightmare I hope you're son gets home you are one in a million xx

[Workingman]

I see that the private health sector has freed up 8,000 beds and that some 20,000 ex medical and ancillary staff have responded to the plea to re-register. Well done to all.

It is not clear how the beds will be used. It could be that patients needing hospital treatment for such as breaks or standard post op care could be moved there to free up NHS beds nearer to the relevant services, staff and equipment and keep them all in one place or they could become dedicated and stand-alone Covid-19 units separated from the general hospital population. We'll see.

Suff, does your lad have an Argentine bank account? If so why not just send him the money sans W.U. it's what we do with our daughter? If not does he have a trusted friend with an account that you could send it to - in extremis and all that?

[cromwell]

Apparently Gtech, the cordless hoover and lawnmower people, have come up with a design for a ventilator in two days. The are working on a prototype now.
It is supposed to be quick to manufacture. Fingers crossed.

[Workingman]

That's great news, Cromwell, let's hope it works out.

Got to say, though, it looks as though the most urgent need atm is for proper PPE for the medics. There must be some facilities in the country that can be turning out decent filter face masks, gloves and full body plastic aprons in pretty short order.

[Suff]

WM, he no longer has an Argentinian bank account and only recently moved 1,000 miles from where he was staying. So he is in a strange place with no friends and no bank account and an expired passport which wont allow him to pick up money.

He is due some pay from the company that paid him off, once I get him to BA, I can sort something with the embassy.

No fun. I had to give my passport and his to book a flight to BA. You can't even order online in Argentina now without ID. Part of their attempt to reduce inflation and get the country back on its feet.

[TheOstrich]

Second or third hand report via my S that troops have been deployed in Birmingham city centre as a visible deterrent. How true that is I've no idea.
Her neighbour also told her there's a police presence outside their local Tesco supermarket following "disturbances" at similar stores in the Black Country …..

[cromwell]

It wouldn't bother me one jot if some shelf strippers had some sense forcibly knocked into them.

[Kaz]

Me neither, Crommers!