California Supermarkets Flocked As Residents Panic Over Novel Coronavirus
Residents hit the shops for essential supplies after their state declared as the virus hotspot
California residents head towards supermarkets to stockpile on essential supplies after the state becomes a Coronavirus hot spot.
There are at least 30 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state, and two of them had no known contact with anyone who was infected.
State officials announced that they are preparing for similar cases wherein an unknown origin infects unsuspecting individuals, and locals are not taking any chances.
Swarms of shoppers stock up on essentials such as water, paper towels and disinfecting wipes to prepare themselves for the possibility of getting quarantined.
On the other hand, cars line up gas stations to make sure their vehicles are filled with petrol.
Residents share photos and videos of nervous locals on social media, where shelves emptied of tinned food and locals climb up the shelved to reach remaining supplies.
Despite all this, President Donald Trump told the public to remain calm and assures everyone that, “there is no reason to panic at all.”
During a press conference on Saturday, he told media to stop sensationalizing the outbreak as all it does is to provoke panic.
“Additional cases in the United States are likely, but healthy individuals should be able to fully recover.”
“Healthy people — if you’re healthy, you’ll probably go through a process and you’ll be fine,” he added.
Vice President Mike Pence also announced the new emergency travel restrictions on countries hit by outbreaks, namely Iran, Italy and South Korea.
He mentioned that any foreign national who had been to Iran in the past 14 days would be banned to enter the U.S.
Pence also confirmed that Trump authorized the State Department to raise the travel advisory level to Level Four – the highest level – on outbreak areas in Italy and South Korea.
Level Four advisories strongly discourage Americans to travel to a specific area for any reason, but not totally forbidding travel.