It has been a very funny start to the New Year – 2020
There is something in the air, it’s not quite right!
It didn’t have a great start – my wife in hospital for a pretty serious operation, then a month of assorted hospital visits, and when I was back talking with friends and colleagues, they all seem to have been ill, bad cold or nausea and balance problems.
For some of them it seemed quite serious, with many visits to specialist doctors, but with no firm diagnosis.
A couple of friends have had coughs for months, no other sign of any other illness, just this persistent bad cough.
There is talk of a bad virus going around, but nobody seemed to understand what is going on.
The new aircraft carrier HMS Prince Charles was docked at the Pier Head in Liverpool, and we fancied going over, to Liverpool, and taking a look.
We were going on the train, but people had started to wear face masks, and the talk was getting quite serious. So, we decided not to venture out.
The WHO (World Health Organisation) said it was a type of SARS virus, but very little was known about it.
It was eventually to be labelled as COVID-19.
There is talk of a world-wide pandemic, the news channels are very thin on facts.
A cruise ship has been quarantined in Japan, and all the passengers are confined to the ship.
Of the 3,711 people on board (passengers and crew) 712 became infected. Of these 14 are said to have died. Their ages ranged from 70 to 87.
Various countries are starting to repatriate their citizens. UK residents are to be brought home very shortly.
We are going to have to wait and see how things develop and keep checking the news for the latest information.