Naturally we are getting a lot of questions about the coronavirus outbreak and how it will affect peoples travel plans. This article from ABC highlights some important points that we have all noticed coming forth from recent news items and other newsletter (reliable) sources. The following summary is not medical advice, but is drawn from a lot of reading by more than 5 people in our office.
There is a well founded concern for older people with preexisting health issues and many in that situation are modifying, or delaying travel plans. The virus does not seem to have such a strong affect on younger people. Caution is still advised for infants. We see more published words describing this as another Flu strain, currently without a vaccine. It is not an Ebola!
Students of history may recall the 1919 Spanish Flu pandemic. This made it to Australia off ships bring home returned soldiers from WW1. This event had a world wide impact and hit countries (in particular 3rd world) massively due to inferior hygiene understanding and medical facilities.
In modern times we have been reminded that approximately 50,000 people die each year due to exiting flu strains – mostly these people are un-vaccinated and elderly
Without any intention of flippancy, an upside would be very low numbers in cities like Venice. Our resident Italian staff member thinks now is the time to visit places like Venice, that are usually submerged with tourists. As the Northern Hemisphere warms up one could think that the coronavirus will follow the same track as SARS did in 2003 and vanish.