Good News Roundup: The Fight Against Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vol. 2

The battle continues as do the small victories that bring us closer to solving the problem at hand

The coronavirus pandemic continues and different countries are experiencing different stages of the infection. At the same time, there have been more positive developments to help combat COVID-19. Let’s take a look at the latest progress from around the world since our last good news bulletin:

Over 3 Lakh People Have Recovered

Since we last checked, the number of people who have recovered from COVID-19 has increased from around 2 lakh to well over 3 lakh. This figure is just as important as the number of infections and new cases as the world tries to curb the spread of the coronavirus and treat those who already have it.

Source

India’s Silver Lining: Clean Air

The COVID-19 pandemic is mostly a grim topic with the loss of lives, livelihood and the full extent of its aftermath still uncertain. Like India, many countries are currently in various forms of lockdown, bringing most industries and transport services to a halt. However, the silver lining for India amongst this chaos is that its air pollution levels have dropped significantly in many of its metropolitan areas. The same cities which often topped charts for having the most hazardous air in the world are experiencing clear blue skies that almost seemed like a matter of legend and tales.

While the air quality does improve in these months as compared to the winter months due to climatic differences, the drop in air pollution has lowered the AQI levels to be a lot more acceptable than usual. In Delhi, the average concentration of PM 2.5 dropped by over 70 per cent between March 20 and March 27. As the lockdown period continues, residents of Dooba, Punjab did not need an exact measurement of how clean the air has been - they could see the snow capped mountain peaks of the Dhauladhar mountain range from almost 200km away. This relief may be short lived but it acts as proof that the effects of pollution are not irreversible and that industries can work towards cleaner technologies.

Source

Many Brands Are Chipping In To Help With Food Supplies

As the nationwide lockdown continues, a common problem across economic classes is the supply of food. For the daily wage workers currently out of work, various companies have stepped up to help in the form of food packets and meals. Meanwhile, some are struggling to find food even if they can pay for it. The CarDekho team also tied up with a set of restaurateurs to make 1000s of tiffins a day and have supplied over 10,000 tiffins so far.

Groceries are also hard to come by during the lockdown as citizens are asked to stay home to avoid getting infected. Many shops and grocery chains don’t have the staff to meet this tremendous demand for home deliveries. As a result, food delivery services like Zomato and Swiggy are also offering grocery delivery services using their network of riders.

Source: whatshot.in

Manufacturing Of 7 Potential Coronavirus Vaccines To Begin Soon

Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates has recently announced that his foundation will help speed up the medical relief efforts against COVID-19. The plan is to build factories for all seven of the most promising vaccines currently in development. Although only one or two of the seven will likely be finalised for mass production (which means billions may be wasted in setting up all the factories) Gates is of the opinion that having facilities ready in time will likely help save many lives in the long run.

“Even though we’ll end up picking at most two of them, we’re going to fund factories for all seven, just so that we don’t waste time in serially saying, ‘OK, which vaccine works?’ and then building the factory,” he said.

Source: goodnewsnetwork.com

Sterilizing and Reusing N95 Masks For Healthcare Workers

Purpose-built PPE such as N95 face masks often used by the medical fraternity are in short supply. Usually, these masks are single-use only but researchers from Duke Health research clinical teams in North Carolina (USA) have found a way to clean and reuse N95 masks using existing decontamination methods. Their process requires specialised equipment to convert hydrogen peroxide into a vapor like spray which spreads through the layers of the mask to kill germs and viruses without degrading its material.

With this method, N95 masks can be used twice or thrice which would offer some relief while the healthcare workers await a fresh supply of PPE.

Source: goodnewsnetwork.com

Also read: Good News Roundup: The Fight Against COVID-19