So, it’s the pandemic apocalypse. But it’s okay, because, as gamers, we’ve been prepping for this since forever. Staying at home? Achievement unlocked. Social distancing? No problem. Washing our hands? It’s like washing NikNaks dust off your controller or keyboard, except now it’s hands. We’ve got this.
President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday declared the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic a medical emergency, subject to multiple quarantine and other relevant procedures including:
- Travel restrictions to and from “high-risk” locations including Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Germany, the US, the UK, and China
- Primary and high schools are closed from 16 March until the end of the Easter holidays (pending a possible extension)
- Colleges, universities, and other tertiary education institutions are not required to close, but at publish time UCT has suspended classes and others are expected to do the same
- Hosting an event of 100 or more people is prohibited
- Commercial facilities like shops are open for now, but subject to increased “hygiene control”
Okay, but what does this mean for us?
- Stay at home and avoid public spaces as much as you can
- If you’re sick with cold or flu symptoms, isolate yourself – but remember that you could be sick for up to two weeks or so without even showing symptoms, so isolate yourself anyway
- Don’t go to Makro, it’s like a mini-coronavirus disaster zone and you don’t actually need ten mega-things of toilet paper
- Stop copy-pasting fake news on Facebook, omg
- This is a legit excuse to finish your backlog