Covid-19 in North Somerset - Part 8: Cancel Christmas?

 What a difference a month makes! Since my last post, the rate of government reported Covid-19 cases has rocketed in both North Somerset and Bristol - see the figures below.  In Bristol, the infection rate is a staggering 330 new cases per day and has been at that rate since the 22 October.  Apparently, the infection rate is high in particular areas, notably Bishopsworth (see: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/nov/19/the-mystery-of-bristols-soaring-covid-19-infection-rate), but the reasons are obscure.  For those using the Zoe-Covid app (https://covid.joinzoe.com/), the map available to those logging shows a marked concentration of cases in the university/college towns and cities of the south-west - Bristol, Bath, Exeter, Plymouth.  Of course, these are the centres of population, but there is a suspicion that students returning to college have brought more than their books!

In North Somerset, we have been averaging more than 70 new cases every day, since the 22 October.  Looking back to my early blogs, I was concerned that in April and May we were averaging 7 new cases a day, significantly more than Bristol.  We are now in a completely different scenario, where case numbers are ten times larger.  Nevertheless, the NHS seems to be coping, though treatment for many other ailments are on hold.  I have been waiting for an appointment to see a surgeon for a knee condition since August and still no news.  My radiotherapy for prostate cancer fortunately finished in March, just ahead of our first lockdown.  

With case numbers now falling in Scotland, Wales and northern England, numbers are still increasing in the south and the Midlands.  There seems to be an slightly unseemly rush at the political level to prepare the country for a Christmas break with no lockdown, so families can gather.  Why is this, when a number of scientists are warning that the result will be more fatalities in the spring?  Don't get me wrong, I love the Christmas holiday and getting together with family and the associated traditions that have developed over time and the new ones that will start.  Others have exactly the same sorts of traditions, at different times of year.  In the first lockdown, many had to give up their celebrations for Eid. So, if we are asked to make a similar sacrifice for Christmas, why would that be any different?  Let's be honest, in a largely secular society, the religious element is mostly absent and the period is just a midwinter holiday with lots of commercial exploitation - and has been for a long time.

Bristol:

North Somerset:

  


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