Coronavirus (COVID-19) - Stay at home as much as possible
Dear Neighbours,
Over the last couple of weeks, it has been amazing to see the massive growth of kindness and neighbourliness around Tower Hamlets and the UK amidst these most worrying of times.
People have started to pop notes through neighbours' doors whom they may not even know, offering to get food, medicines or just to give them a ring if they are self-isolating and feeling down.
I am sure you have already been inundated with emails, news broadcasts, social media posts etc; but if you want to help, or indeed need help yourself, then the Roman Road Trust has compiled a thorough list of organisations on a dedicated page that is being regularly updated:
Stay at home as much as possible
Something I have found particularly worrying is how much people are going out. Cars have been shooting up and down Grove Road all day; groups of 6-8 (and I'm not talking families) are walking up and down the road and folk are going in the Park in large groups as if it is a Bank Holiday. It is SO important we slow the spread of this virus down by staying at home and give the NHS the best chance we can of being able to cope with it. Surely people don't need to be told to put people's lives before their social lives. Do people really need to queue up to jet-wash their car? Of course people need fresh air and children can't be holed up like prisoners forever, but this is only Day One.
This pandemic has been described as the biggest crisis the world has faced since WII, where millions went off to war to fight one another. All we are being asked to do is sit on the sofa and watch Netflix.
KEEP YOUR DISTANCE
Compare the scene in Burdett Road (below) with that in Italy. Yes, it is shocking - If you get to a shop and find a big queue - just walk away. Minimise your exposure. There is plenty of food (especially at the local corner shops actually). And why go shopping as a group or family?We all know how much Italy is suffering. Let's learn from them. Listen to this Channel 4 interview with a doctor at the epicentre of the Italian outbreak. She has learnt the hard way. Let's listen to her wise words.
