CT - A bit of a local report.....
I just wanted to share what continues to be an almost total 'disconnect' between huge portions of the local population in CT with the broader news about COVID19 and the devastation seen in Italy in particular as well as around the world.
I've posted about the CT children and parent's response to the cancelation of CIAC tournaments as I found the response shocking then as I do now as the articles keep stacking up and then to see the number of signatures on the petition is something that I find mind blowing. Over 85,000 signatures on a petition about cancelling the tourney's! I wonder how many deaths from COVID19 the State of CT will see but with a 5% mortality then its likely that CT will see possible deaths in the range of 175,000 people.
I wonder how many of the people that signed the petition in CT will themselves lose their lives to COVID19 or will lose family members to COVID19 and due to the the lack of preparedness seen so far in CT from the inadequate testing to hospital workers with no protective gear to no quarantine locations set up and no temporary hospital rooms set up as well. Train wreck in process in CT and its a tragedy.
Dave Ruden referred to in the article below IMO had a huge opportunity with his reach and notoriety to share the bigger picture about COVID19 with the folks in CT and possibly mobilise the protesting students to assist in COVID19 planning efforts but IMO HE CHOSE NOT TO. Instead we see Dave Ruden fanning flames of entitlement and anger in the face of a pandemic event where many people in CT will DIE and endure much pain and suffering. I expected more of Dave Ruden and School Sports Officials as IMO they missed a huge opportunity to engage students on an important issue but instead they fuelled the rage of students instead. Sad to see this play out and I think it will be yet another regrettable stain on sports in CT.
Swift Reaction to CIAC Cancellation of State Tournament Play; Petition Grows; Protest Planned
Quotes from article:
Tuesday’s decision of the CIAC to cancel winter games “out of an abundance of caution for students, families and community spectators,” was made amid ongoing concerns regarding the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus).
In a post on Tuesday, Dave Ruden of The Ruden report said, “There is nothing — NOTHING — that turns people in this state more apoplectic than the cancellation of high school sporting events.”
In a statement, the CIAC acknowledged that there was a variety of approaches among local districts, including some indicating they would play while limiting crowds to less than 100 people and others willing would play without spectators.
But the CIAC also noted there were schools declining to participate and others are withdrawing their gymnasiums as neutral venues for games.
A petition was quickly launched online by Jake Walker, a former Fairfield Prep Hockey Goaltender, appealing to CIAC executive director Glenn Lungarini and Governor Ned Lamont to continue CIAC winter tournaments without fans.
The petition describes hearts of players, families, and coaches being broken, especially among seniors.
“Amid the COVID-19 outbreak, many schools, universities, and sports teams are taking precaution to prevent the spread of the disease. However, cancelling the entirety of the CIAC Winter State Tournament is absolutely unprecedented and unacceptable.” – Change.org petition
The petition asks the CIAC to reconsider its decision and agree to a compromise in which the tournaments would continue but with a restricted spectator audience and live streaming on the internet.
That said, the possibility of playing the games without fans present is fading due to lack of venues. More and more schools that had offered up their gymnasiums have withdrawn their offers.
Still, as of Wednesday morning the petition had been signed by 85,680 people.[BBM]
Jake Walker
@JDWalker37
·
11 Mar
At 88,913 signatures, the petition is represented by all fifty states and forty-three countries. 77.3% of signatures come from Connecticut residents.
@FPvarsityhockey
#cthk
GHS [GREENWICH HIGH SCHOOL] girls basketball players traveled to CIAC headquarters in Cheshire to protest the decision to cancel winter tournaments. Contributed photo
In addition to the petition, a protest against the decision to cancel winter games is scheduled for Wednesday at 10:00am at 30 Realty Drive in Cheshire, at the offices of the CIAC.
CIACprotest@CiaCprotest
PROTEST TOMORROW MORNING AT CIAC HQ IN CHESHIRE AT 10:30 AM.
#cthk #ctbb #ctgb
100
5:31 PM - Mar 10, 2020
Morning sportscaster and co-host on the WTIC Morning Show Joe D’Ambrosio Tweeted on Wednesday morning quoted Lungarini saying the CIAC decision is irrevocable.
Joe D'Ambrosio
✔@JoeDSports
Just had
@ciacsports executive director Glenn Lungarini on
@WTIC1080 ..He says ,barring any new information from
@GovNedLamont on the coronoavirus, the decision to cancel the winter sports tournaments is irrevocable.
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The drive through testing site in Greenwich has been hit by long lines and now a total lack of swabbing supplies. Staff don't have adequate protective gear either.
Further, the State Board of Health Senior Doctor when questioned by the Press about the incident in Westport Ct where a person with COVID19 attended a party with over 20 people and then fled the country, HAD NO IDEA THAT THIS HAD HAPPENED! Westport, CT is now a hotspot with over 20 cases and the BOARD OF HEALTH IN HARTFORD HAD NO CLUE! Just another example IMO of Hartford myopia and lack of attention to anything having to do with Southern CT/Fairfield County. Hotspot event had occurred in Westport yet Hartford had NO CLUE!
Westport Coronavirus: 20 Test Positive; Emergency Declared
20 Confirmed Coronavirus Cases in Westport: First Selectman
The situation in CT is IMO so bad that its like watching a train wreck in slow motion as State Officials seem powerless to DO ANYTHING to keep residents safe. The lack of protective gear for front line workers IMO is unconscionable as is ongoing inaction from the State Representatives in Washington to get supplies from strategic reserves. Why can't federal resources from the strategic stockpile be made available to keep front line workers SAFE? Where are Senator's Blumenthal and Murphy on this issue? Have they toured Greenwich Hospital and seen the remote testing scene fiasco? Why can't the swab kits be sourced from strategic supplies? Why aren't front line workers being given protective gear and yes this mean valet attendants greeting emergency room personnel and security staff in ER who AREN'T GIVEN PROTECTIVE GEAR!
If swabbing kits can't be found in the US then WHY NOT IMPORT THEM from South Korea and China? To listen to Gov. Lamont moan about no testing capacity has to be one of the most absolutely pathetic actions by a politician that I've seen in awhile. Gov. Lamont and his team have had since December to prepare for COVID19 and so far as I can tell having listened to all the conferences, it appears they did little to nothing to prepare. Now the plan seems to be to moan about the state of affairs and beg Washington for assistance. Meanwhile people in CT are getting sick in increasing numbers and no plans appear to be in place for additional hospital capacity or quarantine centers. No leadership seems to be forthcoming from Hartford and so it seems the residents of the State are simply on their own to cope the best that they can. Scary stuff IMO.
To have been following the situation in Italy daily from its inception and realising that the window of opportunity CT had to do something has now been BLOWN is one of the hardest things I've had to watch as we know how this story will end. Gov Cuomo IMO on behalf of the citizens of NEW YORK is fighting the good fight to try and flatten the curve and to prepare for the inevitable onslaught of cases that are coming, BUT CT ISN'T FOLLOWING SUIT.
Gov. Lamont and his team continue to just IMO go through the motions and react to events but nothing is changing and leadership has been absent. I don't know why the Head of the Board of Health hasn't handed in his resignation as his decision to not prepare the testing starting back in December 2019 is IMO akin to criminally negligent homicide as the State hasn't been able to do more than 150 tests in total with its 2 workers in the State Lab. CT has a population of 3.5 million and the situation with the State Lab is wholly inadequate. Private testing is slowly coming on board but the execution is uneven and poor IMO and now the swabbing materials are in short supply and many people can't get the required Dr's note to even wait in line for hours to possibly get swabbed. Where are the quarantine facilities and what provisions have been made to increase hospital beds when things get bad? Are any plans in place to convert schools to hospitals or quarantine facilities. Will the people in the Southern part of the State simply be left to die at home due to lack of medical facilities? Right now, this seems to be the plan that Hartford has in place for Southern CT and its not any different IMO from the prior guidance where 'if you have a fever and a cough then you have COVID19 and please stay at home' which is the existing advice from the Hartford Board of Health Director Doctor! Stunning Stuff IMO to have happen in US.
Simply no words for what I'm watching play out on the ground in CT less than 50 miles from Midtown Manhattan as it feels more like North Korea here than anyplace else on earth.
MOO
