Coronavirus DK: Don’t get careless, people

While the administration is holding discussions about which parts of the economy to open next, some people are acting as though the risk of the infection spreading is over.

The weather has improved this past week, with the highest temperatures of the year. Danes are always eager to come out in the sunshine after the long, dark winter. But too many of them are forgetting to follow the guidelines (DK) for social distancing, say the police. “I am very upset and extremely disappointed,” tweeted Claus Oxfeldt, chairman of the Danish Police Union, about the crowds in certain areas of Copenhagen. He pointed specifically at the Islands Brygge neighborhood in Copenhagen, which has several large lawns along the harbor front, where 300-400 people were gathering, mostly in small groups of under 10 persons each but too close to one another. The police have issued warnings rather instead of giving fines immediately, and people disperse. But when the police return, they find that the same people have returned to the spot or others have gathered there. They are surprised that people care more about getting sun than their health and say they will begin to issue fines more quickly. The fine for violating the limit of a 10-person group is about DKK 1,500 ($215).

Crowded supermarkets and full busses

Employees in supermarkets have noticed similar behavior (DK): more people are no longer complying with the recommendations on social distancing. According to Per Tønnesen, section chairman for the retail trade union, the organization receives 15-20 reports per day that customers come too close together in certain areas, such as the produce and refrigerated sections, and they are not using sanitizer and disposable gloves. People are also shopping in groups, both young people and families. The problems are worst at the large supermarkets, where there is more room for customers to keep their distance from one another. Smaller grocery stores are better at limiting the number of customers on the premises at a time. One large supermarket chain, Coop, however, says that it has not received such complaints from employees and that customers appear to be adhering to the guidelines. That may be because employees are reluctant to take problems to their employers, comments Tønnesen. Jens Juul Nielsen, Coop’s  information director, responds that union representatives should feel free to speak to their managers because they company wants to maintain the safest conditions possible in the stores. 

A few days ago, TV2 News published photos of a bus full of passengers (DK) traveling across the country from Aalborg to Copenhagen. The sight angered Benny Engelbrecht, the Minister of Transportation, who asked the Minister of Health to issue an executive order that long-distance buses may not be more than half-full. At the time of the photo, the situation on the bus was not a clear violation of the law but went against the general recommendations that passengers in collective traffic maintain a distance from one another. If the bus company in question, Flixbus, does not comply with the rules, said Engelbrecht in a press release, its operating license will be withdrawn. The company apologized to any passengers who felt insecure about riding on a full bus.

Too early for zoos and cafes 

Although the trend in infections and deaths is still on the right track, epidemiologists say that we shouldn’t become complacent because the reopening has begun.  Allan Randrup Thomsen, Professor of Virology at University of Copenhagen and Jens Lundgren, Professor of Infectious Disease Medicine are both skeptical about proposals (DK) for opening additional parts of the economy. They warn that people must be careful to continue social distancing, and more testing is needed. Recently the police gave permission for zoos to reopen, but the government asked them to reconsider and the reopening was postponed. Others have proposed opening certain regions of the country on a staggered schedule, but the experts warn that the country is so small that such a policy could prompt people to travel to restaurants and cafes in the open areas. They stress the need for an overall plan for reopening gradually.