COVID-19 continues to dominate daily life and seems to have put the world at a standstill. All of us are adjusting to the new normal the coronavirus has brought, but we must be reminded that these changes are for a reason. Social distancing, staying home, and practicing sanitary habits will make a large impact on the virus.
Over one million people around the globe have now been infected by the coronavirus, and over 60,000 people have died. COVID-19, with a 5% death rate, is proving to be less deadly than some other diseases which broke out in the recent past. A 90% death rate was associated with Ebola, a 34% death rate with MERS (Middle-East Respiratory Syndrome), and an 11% death rate was associated with SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) in comparison.
China has sent 3 teams of doctors to help in Italy and is sending medical teams to other countries to provide aid as well. Italy’s amount of new cases has been steadily decreasing, which is a good sign for the rest of the world. Spain has passed up Italy and now has the 2nd most coronavirus cases in the world, but still has a significantly lower death rate than Italy. South Africa has had quite a successful fight with COVID-19 so far, mainly as a result of their swift acting leadership and more efficient handling of the situation than many other countries.
The United States still has the largest number of coronavirus cases, with numbers hitting over 300,000 infected. President Trump has extended our nationwide practice of social distancing until at least April 30th. "The better you do, the faster this whole nightmare will end," the President said at a White House News Conference on March 29th. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (C.D.C.) says that all Americans should wear masks when going out in public, even though President Trump continually states that he won’t. President Trump has refused to issue a national stay-at-home order, so it’s up to individual state governments to make that decision.
Missouri Governor Mike Parson issued a statewide stay-at-home order on April 3rd, which will go in effect from April 6th, 2020 until April 24th, 2020. Under the order, Missouri residents can only leave their home for “essential activities,” to work for an “essential business,” or for “essential travel." The order states that all Missourians should avoid leaving their homes unless necessary. Missourians should be avoiding gatherings of 10 or more people, and all schools must remain closed until at least the end of the stay-at-home order.
The Rolla City Council passed a stay-at-home order on March 30, 2020 to do their part to slow the spread of COVID-19. This ordinance goes into effect at 8 a.m. Monday, April 6, and will remain in effect through Monday, May 11. Missouri University of Science and Technology’s (Missouri S&T) chancellor, Chancellor Mo Dehghani announced on April 2nd, 2020 that Missouri S&T’s spring commencement will be postponed and a date for the commencement has yet to be determined. “The growing concerns about the spread of COVID-19 are simply too great to ignore, and we all must protect the most vulnerable members of our Missouri S&T community,” Chancellor Dehghani said in an email to May graduation candidates. Missouri S&T continues to post updates for their community at coronavirus.mst.edu.
By: Alyssa Crum
