Kate Hawkesby on Covid 19 coronavirus: We can't get complacent about the lockdown

COMMENT:

So we've had the law laid down over what to expect this Easter weekend as we hit the lockdown halfway mark - police will be out in force.

We cannot get complacent. Easier said than done.

Most of us are doing well, and want to do well, but there are exceptions.

The greengrocers who're opening up despite the ban. The parents driving an hour to drop kids to play dates at a totally different bubble. The cyclists heading out for lengthy rides well out of their area and with people from other bubbles.

I'm sure we've all got stories of what we've seen or heard.

Police have been contacted with an overwhelming 37,000 reports of lockdown breaches.

The latest flouting I saw challenged was the old 'meet us at the end of the driveway' for a cheeky wine scenario. Neighbours who think they're being friendly and social - apparently that's a no no.

Scientist Siouxsie Wiles has said to stop it. She says that's breaking the rules because although you may argue you're the required two metres apart on your deck chair, the rule is actually: stay at home.

Wiles points out that the primary transmission method is through droplets and that asymptomatic transmission is also possible. In effect, we can't just assume that because we feel a box of birds, we're not carrying the virus and inadvertently passing it on.
The advice is, if you need to drink socially, do it online.

But I wonder whether just feeling well, and not sick at all, and with our case numbers falling, whether that makes people feel invincible?

I was at the local dairy yesterday hunting for bananas, and another shopper waltzed in - completely ignoring the one in, one out rule, walked right up to where I was standing, chatting to the owners about the weather as she went, and she carried on towards me stepping practically right into my bubble to have a look for her own groceries.

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Although I was taken aback at how close she was to me, she appeared non-plussed.
I'm sure it wasn't intentional, I'm sure she was just genuinely enjoying her day and not thinking about what she was doing.

But that's the point: we can't let up. We're doing so well, we have to keep up the vigilance.

The more we stay vigilant, the more likely we are to get out of this lockdown on time.
And who doesn't want that?