“If you are out of your home for one of the four permitted reasons, then you need to be wearing a mask and I stress - or a face coverings. It need not be a hospital-grade mask. It can be a scarf, it can be a home-made mask. As you know, we have the best part of 2.5, 3 million of these masks on order. The first really significant batch of those will arrive this week around 300,000, perhaps a little more than that, and we will have more to say about how we’re going to distribute those, the different methods we’ll use and who’ll be eligible to receive those as quickly as possible.”

Premier Andrews.

Because of the urgency and the difficulty of some to get a face mask by Wednesday, here is a very temporary suggestion…

One does not need a sewing machine to make a mask at home. All you need is a sheet of tightly woven cotton…of 600 threads per inch. One can also use two sheets of chiffon, polyester and spandex, seemed to make the most effective combination, filtering out 80–99% of the particles, depending on their size…say the researchers.

Researchers suggest that the performance of this combination is comparable to that of N95 masks, which are used by healthcare professionals. They explain that combinations involving a fabric with a tight weave, such as cotton, and one that can hold a static charge, such as silk, are likely effective because they provide a double barrier: mechanical and electrostatic.

Below is a video how to make a mask without sewing which can be a guide to anyone interested.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPx1yqvJgf4

PS: No need to go into expense either...cut up a cotton pillow case or heavy cotton T shirt...

Now if you can hold a needle or even do simple hemming..this shoud be a cinch...again, no sewing machine required.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmQrKhvp9_Y

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGkI-MyWBTg  (my favourite)

To understand why face masks work, it is important to look at how the virus that causes Covid-19 spreads in the first place.

Once it has infected someone, the Sars-CoV-2 virus responsible for the disease hijacks their cells to replicate itself. As it multiplies, these new virus particles then burst out of the cells and become suspended in the bodily fluids in our lungs, mouth and nose. When an infected person coughs, they can send showers of tiny droplets.. known as aerosols..filled with the virus into the air.

A health official on the Texas Gulf Coast says that 85 infants have tested positive for the coronavirus, AP reports.

Corpus Christi Nueces County Public Health Director Annette Rodriguez said Friday that the 85 infants are each younger than one, but offered no other details, including how the children are suspected to have become infected.

“These babies have not even had their first birthday yet. Please help us to stop the spread of this disease” by staying home except for necessary trips, socially distancing and wearing masks in public, Rodriguez said

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2020/jul/19/coronavirus-live-news-who-reports-record-global-case-rise-as-sydney-tightens-overseas-arrivals?page=with:block-5f13bb288f08c5

NSW RESIDENTS URGED TO AVOID NON-ESSENTIAL TRAVEL AND SOCIAL GATHERINGS.

Residents in NSW are being urged to avoid non-essential travel and social gatherings, as health authorities expressed concerns about coronavirus spreading at pubs, restaurants, homes and gyms.

As NSW recorded 18 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, Deputy Chief Health Officer Dr Jeremy McAnulty said authorities were calling on people across the state to" redouble their efforts to stop the virus spreading" while "cases resulting from community transmission continue to be reported".

COVID-19 can be spread even before symptoms appear, by such things as coughing, sneezing, or even speaking at close range.

If I wear my face covering to protect you from me.. and.. you wear your face covering to protect me from you.. then… we can all dramatically decrease our risk of transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Wearing a face covering in conjunction with social distancing and frequent handwashing or use of hand sanitizer, will be important in limiting the spread of COVID-19.

               A reminder to those who have not seen the news... 

       Hopefully the rest of Australia will follow Melbourne's lead.

The World Health Organisation is acknowledging the possibility that COVID-19 might be spread in the air under certain conditions – after more than 200 scientists urged the agency to do so.

In an open letter published this week in a journal, two scientists from Australia and the US wrote that studies have shown "beyond any reasonable doubt that viruses are released during exhalation, talking and coughing in microdroplets small enough to remain aloft in the air".

The researchers, along with more than 200 others, appealed for authorities including the WHO to adopt more stringent protective measures.

WHO has long dismissed the possibility that the coronavirus is spread in the air except for certain risky medical procedures, such as when patients are first put on breathing machines.

In a change to its previous thinking, WHO noted on Thursday that studies evaluating COVID-19 outbreaks in restaurants, choir practices and fitness classes suggested the virus might have been spread in the air.

WHO's stance also recognised the importance of people spreading COVID-19 without symptoms, a phenomenon the organisation has long downplayed.

                                                                          AND

Life has changed a lot in the past few months and it’s likely going to change even more. People are sick of being at home, missing family and friends…scared about what’s ahead. Some make plans about what they are going to do once this is all over.

But wait a moment..what if life never fully goes back to how it was pre-covid-19? What if this pandemic is a turning point in the lifecycle of the world..and after it, the world is not quite the same?

Being the eternal optimist, I like to think the world could come out of this crisis better than it was before. But is that possible? I think it is since the way I see it, we’re never going “back to normal”…so what we should be doing is using this time to make the “new normal” a good one.

Like Martin Luther King…I, too, have a dream. I dream that today’s generations will leave aside some of their material expectations, or at the very least look at the world through different eyes. Hopefully, we will sacrifice some of our own selfish desires and truly realise we are indeed “all in this together” and choose instead to live for others rather than focusing on our own best interests. That's my dream. What if?

                                 HOW DO YOU WEAR A MASK?

The most important thing is that the mask or face covering covers your mouth and nose and is snug.

Not your forehead or your chin — it needs to cover your airways.

Make sure there are no holes in the mask.

Don't touch the outside of the mask and make sure you wash your hands thoroughly before you put it on and after you take it off.

If you wear glasses or have a beard there are a few tips and tricks to make sure your mask is fitted properly.

For single-use surgical masks, make sure the coloured side is facing outward, make sure there are no tears or holes, and if there's a metallic strip at the top of the mask make sure it's positioned against the bridge of your nose.

The Victorian Government also has a thorough guide on how to correctly wear different types of masks.

Surgical, N95 and P2 masks are being sold at chemists and even dollar stores all over Melbourne.

You can also order them online — just make sure you are buying them from a reputable source.

However, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has recommended people not use P2 or N95 masks outside of healthcare settings.

This is likely because frontline workers are most in need of them.

There are a number of people also making and selling homemade masks, which you can also try making yourself.

The DHHS recommends cloth masks are of washable fabric and three layers of a mix of breathable fabrics "to ensure adequate protection".

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-20/victoria-makes-masks-mandatory-what-that-means-coronavirus/12471230

 Spanish authorities have ordered the culling of almost 100,000 mink following an outbreak at a farm, where the animals are bred for fur, after a number tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Environment of Spain's Aragon region said in a statement on Thursday that it had ordered the slaughter of the 92,700 mink after seven workers on the farm tested positive for COVID-19 and the animals were found to be infected with the coronavirus.

This is not the first mink farm to have seen a coronavirus outbreak. In May, Dutch authorities introduced mandatory testing at all mink farms in the Netherlands after they said they believed a mink might have infected a human with COVID-19.

Source: Ch 9news

The virus can also enter through the eyes I was told, that is why health care workers wear a face sheild as well.