Over the last week there have been major developments in California regarding the coronavirus outbreak including Los Angeles County declaring a state of emergency with six new cases reported and the first coronavirus death reported in California. Still, no cases of coronaviruses have been reported in San Diego County or in the South Bay.
“The virus is spreading, how soon it will appear in our community, we don’t know. We are closely monitoring the situation,” Dr. Hai Shao, an infectious disease doctor affiliated with Scripps Mercy Hospital and Sharp Chula Vista, said.
While he said the threat of the coronavirus is real, he said it is also still true that it’s more likely for people in San Diego to contract the flu than it is for people to contract the coronavirus.
However, the mortality rate of coronavirus, which is 3.4 percent according to the March 4 World Health Organization report, is higher than the mortality rate of the flu which is about 0.1 percent.
According to the San Diego County Department of Health, as of March 3, 29 people have been tested for coronavirus in San Diego with 22 tests coming back negative and seven tests pending results. A total of 418 people have been monitored for coronavirus in San Diego, with 88 people still being actively monitored.
“Zero cases have been acquired in San Diego County, that tells you that the level of infection, if any, is still very very low in our neighborhood,” Shao said.
In communities across the nation, the increase in reported cases of coronavirus and the possibility of social distancing being encouraged has prompted people to stock up on essential items, face masks and hand sanitizer.
An employee at Costco on H street in Chula Vista confirmed that this has begun at least in some part in the South Bay. He said since last weekend, Costco has been selling out of toilet paper, paper towels and water everyday around noon.
Walmart in Eastlake also seemed to be running low on toilet paper, with some shelves completely wiped out.
Shao said that it’s “probably healthy” for people to prepare for a coronavirus outbreak in San Diego so there isn’t any last minute scrambling to get supplies, but advises people not to go to extremes or panic.
During a CDC telebriefing update on Tuesday, Dr. Nancy Messonnier, the Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said as community spread increases, local communities might start encouraging social distancing.
“The goal of social distancing is to limit exposure by reducing face-to-face contact and preventing spread among people in community settings. What these actions look like at the community level will vary depending on local conditions,” Messonier said.
To protect yourself from coronavirus, Shao advises washing your hands frequently and staying up to date on the latest coronavirus news because the situation is constantly developing.
“People just have to pay close attention. I think that’s the best advice I can tell you,” Shao said.
