Six-foot rule to protect against coronavirus is questionable, MIT professor says (The Boston Globe)

I found this study interesting. They demonstrated a safe low concentration of 0.03 ppm chlorine dioxide gas in the air was effective at inactivating floating influenzavirus aerosols, thus preventing airborne transmission, or greatly reducing viral loads in the lungs (I am not too clear on whether the chlorine dioxide prevented viral transmission or just greatly inhibited viral replication in the lungs).

The authors suggested that this safe concentration of chlorine dioxide gas could be added to the air in crowded environments during an influenzavirus pandemic, to prevent the transmission of the virus.

I think this is an interesting idea, and could well work for the coronavirus pandemic. I imagine chlorine dioxide gas-generating machines could be set up in hospital air conditioning systems, to protect the doctors and nurses who are treating coronavirus patients.

The logistics of setting up chlorine dioxide gas-generating machines in other crowded environments such as public transport though would be difficult.

0.03 ppm of chlorine dioxide appears safe, as the recommended maximum exposure limit is 0.1 ppm over a 10-hour work shift.

 

Well, they're certainly being staggeringly thoughtless. It doesn't seem to have occurred to anyone that telling the nation to order their groceries online might affect the wheelchair users and other disabled people who depend on them.

I used to visit supermarkets a handful of times a year – now it's at least twice a week, because I can only carry one small bag at a time. Ditto my visually impaired relative, who needs one hand free to hold her dog's harness and finds it hard to know how close she's standing to others. Meantime, people who're easily capable of pushing an entire trolley-load around the supermarket at once, and driving it home in their car, are having their shopping delivered.

Neither of us fall into the 'extremely vulnerable' category and both could manage our lives perfectly well without assistance, if people just thought before they acted.

 

And whinging because they have nothing to do and can only go out once a day for exercise.....

 

When out for my lunchtime socially distanced walk, I give much more than 2 metres clearance. I especially avoid walking within what I think of as other people's "vapour trails" they may leave lingering in the air behind them. I pointed out at work, before we started working from home, that two people over 2m apart in a meeting room are not necessarily safe from transmitting virus to each other - it's an enclosed space with exhaled air circulating randomly around. And even if they were to take socially distance turns using a whiteboard for instance, they would still be moving in and out of each other's exhalations.

 

@Perrier I'm here for it!

 

oh God, that is so funny, oh hallelujah I needed that laugh tonight thank you

 

Thanks Mij, I also like Jem, needed a laugh. Here in Montreal, the numbers are increasingly dramatically daily. And they are still not asking folks to use masks outside. If asymptomatic folks can pass it on, then shouldn't everyone wear a mask?

 

At least by the end of the pandemic, thinking about possible spreading viruses will have invaded our subconscious.

This afternoon I found myself using an antiseptic wipe on my debit card in order to make a telephone payment.

 

François Legault must be following Dr.Tam's recommendations? She is still not advising to wear masks. I think this 'idea' of not wearing masks has changed based on recent news coverage, and that now we should be wearing them.

 

I have been unable to find a supply of surgical style masks, all of the sources available seem to be either straight out scams, coming from China (so unlikely to arrive before this is over), or 50 times what they should cost.

All I have is my full face FFP3 mask, which is not for walking about in outside, or a slightly too small kn95 bikers mask (that was 'in stock' but took 2 weeks to come from 12 miles down the road and has a customs label under the RM48 label with my address on, and for some reason went via Bristol).

Lightweight 'comfortable' masks I can't get.

Not that I have any plans to go out, but it'd be nice to have something that didn't make me look like i should be covered in tomato sauce and be mushed up on toast when I have a delivery.

I am probably not alone in the UK in not being able to physically get masks - I've been trying for nearly a month.

This may be a factor in why so few people are using them in the UK.

 

They are having their groceries delivered to reduce their contact with other people especially if they live with someone who is high risk; because there are huge lineups to get into grocery stores; they are assuming that they are infected and don't want to infect anyone else.

 

The only problem is - where do you get masks at this time? Any available masks should be going into healthcare facilities, long-term care homes, and people at high risk.

 

They were saying on the news here in BC last night that a lot of the people who have COVID-19 in QC had gone down to the US during spring break (which was earlier in that province then elsewhere) and brought the virus back with them before the warnings about the virus had been issued.

 

I agree. I donated all my 10 N95 masks to a nearby walk-in clinic recently. There are ways to make homemade masks, they are not as effective as N95 but are helpful and better than not wearing anything.

 

San Diego newspaper article quoted a researcher of bacteria and viruses from a university's oceanography department warning that the wind at the beach (way too many surfers and bikes, people) can force the virus up your nasal passages from beyond a 6 foot distancing metric. .

Stay even farther away when it's windy.

 

@Wonko there are surgical masks on eBay, I got a pack of 50 for about £25 before. They’re more expensive than they were before the coronavirus crisis but that’s about the cheapest I could find. I have a pack for us at home and also sent a pack to other loved ones. I also bought cloth masks for us - on Etsy, to wear over the top of surgical masks.

 

I ordered some from ebay at the end of January before this all kicked off, and just got an email from them last week saying order order was cancelled and refunded

But what I have managed to get hold of are filter cloths for inserting into masks. I've been trying to psyche up enough energy over last 2 weeks to make a leather face mask that I can line with these filter cloths

 

@Wonko

If you have a first aid kit at home or in your car, they often include these thin paper masks. I found a couple in mine.

They might not be great but have this wire thing to adjust the mask tight to the face and might be better than nothing.

 

I will check it's inventory - thank you.

ETA - one CPR face mask listed , and a compass for some bizarre reason. I wonder how many medical issues in the home or office can't be dealt with without a compass.