14 LISTENER MARCH 14 2020
W
hen Tony Scott of
Orewa heard New
Zealand’s first case of
the Covid-19 corona-
virus disease had been
confirmed, he says his
mind raced through
the possible scenarios
of quarantines and shops with bare shelves
and he decided that he and his wife needed
to stock up on essentials.
He says she sprang into action and started
looking through the pantry. “No,” I said,
“not food! We must buy a
new big-screen smart TV
and computer, upgrade the
broadband and sign up to
Sky Sport.”
In the face of the latest
health scare, Scott has
retained his sense of
humour – and his marriage- but all over the country,
many others are taking it
much more seriously.
At Thorndon Pharmacy in central Wel-
lington, a stone’s throw from the Ministry
of Health, pharmacist Arthur Chan could
do a vigorous trade in face masks and hand
sanitiser – if only he could get the stock.
“We’re supplied sporadically,” he says,
“and as soon as they come in, they sell.”
He has heard of profiteering occurring, but
his pharmacy is selling the items at regular
prices.
He is aware, as his customers surely would
be too, that evidence for the efficacy of face
masks is at best weak. However, some of
his customers want supplies because they
intend to travel overseas, and Chan thinks
they could be beneficial in preventing the
spread of droplets from a person who may
already be infected with Sars-CoV-2, the
new strain of coronavirus that has sparked
a frenzy of concern around the world.
Current advice is that
washing your hands
thoroughly with soap
and warm water is as
good as hand sanitiser.
Nevertheless, at Thorn-
don Pharmacy as at
many pharmacies, both
masks and hand sanitiser
are highly sought after.
The swoop on Auckland
supermarkets after New Zealand’s first case
of Covid-19 was confirmed in the city also
saw toilet paper, tissues, bottled water and
non-perishable foods bought in bulk, sug-
gesting some shoppers are anticipating long
periods of isolation – voluntary or otherwise.
“If they were home, they could just order
online,” notes Chan.VIRAL
SPIRAL
You can reduce your chances of being
infected by the new coronavirus, but
you’ll need more than good luck to
escape its economic impact. by JOANNE BLACK
COVID
“Essentially, we’ve
been priming
ourselves to get thescreaming willies
over something
like Covid-19.”