Posted on 03/17/2020 9:06:20 AM PDT by NRx
...Bed shortages, a lack of isolation areas and short supplies of soap are already a daily reality at one hospital in Ciudad Guayana, a city in the country’s east. There is a nearby centre set up for the pandemic response but workers there say there are not enough ambulances to ferry patients.
“We are experts in crisis,” one health worker said. “But the coronavirus is a whole other challenge and we’ll need much more support.”
Cases of Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, reached 33 in Venezuela on Monday evening, following the first two confirmed cases three days earlier. The government responded with a quarantine in the capital, Caracas, and six other states, alongside travel bans. On Monday the regulation was extended to the whole country.
But the outbreak could hardly come at a worse time for Venezuela, which despite boasting the planet’s largest proven oil reserves remains mired in years-long economic and social turmoil. Hyperinflation is rampant – Venezuela’s central bank said inflation reached nearly 10,000% last year – while shortages in basic foodstuffs and medical supplies are routine. Advertisement
Hospitals regularly face power outages, while basic supplies – from latex gloves to basic antibiotics – are often hard to come by. Four and a half million people have fled Venezuela, with healthcare workers and disease specialists among them. Treatable diseases such as diphtheria, measles and malaria continue to spread in fertile conditions.
...A survey of doctors across the country carried out by the local NGO Médicos Unidos found that only 25% of respondents had reliable running water in their hospitals and clinics. Two-thirds said they did not have gloves, masks, soap, goggles or scrubs.
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
Socialism kills.
Thank to Socialism they were way ahead of most of the rest of the world as far as running out of things go.
Crying shame from a country that was once one of the richest on the planet.
It’s nothing. The heat and humidity will kill it.
And here I am sitting on a hoard of tp. Well not exactly a hoard just one package of 6 jumbo rolls. Should last a while though.
Indeed. Rarely has a nation or its people been so severely punished for their political mistakes. But yes, elections have consequences.
Take the shortages her and multiply time 100 and you have socialism.
“It’s nothing. The heat and humidity will kill it.”
It’s true! I have it on good authority from several graduates of the University of Internet Medical School College of Virology that warm weather will surely put an end to COVID-19.
Venezuela is therefore safe!
We are looking a lot like venezuala right now- store shelves are empty- toilet paper is non existent in stores-
stocking up isn’t hoarding really- no more than say stocking up on a farm of say hog feed for the winter, or cow feed or whatever- a lot of folks have a hard time getting to the store too, so they stock up whenever they can get there-
I’ve witnessed people with literal cart loads of toiletpaper coming out of local grocery store- shelves are bare now- they stocked them again the other day- put up a sign ‘no more than two multipacks per customer’ and still the shelves went bare within an hour or so-
It’s unreal- even the meat shelves were bare- and especially the cleaning isle- clorox, lysol, purell, wet wipes, isoprpyl alcohol etc- all wiped out- it was surreal- like walking through a store during wartime i would imagine- you can just see people driving by the store watching for the supply truck-
One thing we know toilet paper makers are making out like bandits.
I would think they’d be ramping up production to meet demand, but so far- it seems they can’t keep up-
I think we are under the Chinese curse of living in interesting times.
Probably a few stores have empty shelves. Most stores have plenty of food and other items in stock, with shortages of a few items. Most of the lines and “panic” are people that dismissed the warnings that there would be quarantines and lockdowns.
In Venezuela most of the shelves are empty most of the time.
Dishonest to claim we look like Venezuela.
Venezuela has LOTS of Chinese, Russians and Iranians roaming around.
“One thing we know toilet paper makers are making out like bandits.”
The long term consumption of TP has not changed. I wouldn’t go long on TP maker stocks.
LOL Dishonest- I said WE- around where i am- not WE the US- Cripes- easy there fella- it’s the truth that the store is looking like venezuala- not exactly- but we’re getting there- there’s no bread, no cleaning supplies- no meats, etc- several isles are empty-
What is wrong with you? You looking to call people liars today or something? Chill out dude=-
“it was surreal- like walking through a store during wartime”
This is a war. Granted the enemy is non-human, microscopic and vastly outnumbers us. And leaving aside the question of which side China is on, for now. The country, and much of the world, is on a war footing to deal with the bungled Chinese bioweapon.
But consider, in a week or two all the shelves will be restocked and many of the things that are short now will be back, made with American resources and in American factories. Yes, in a week or two. For most stuff (like TP).
We look pretty good for a wartime economy, IMO.
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