Considering the ongoing pandemic that is shaking the world to its core, people have been confused, scared, and cautious. The government of every affected country — and even states that have not yet been affected, is doing its best to protect its people and contain the virus. There have been various preventive and precautionary measures that have been implemented by the current administration of each nation. The said measures include but are not limited to promoting personal hygiene, imposing curfews, closing recreational establishments, banning flights, implementing community quarantine, and enforcing lockdown.
The terms “lockdown” and “quarantine” have been arousing fear from the populace. Since these words are not casually used, government ordering these policies in order to safeguard and control the public have created confusion and panic. These two terms have been frequently confused by people and, sometimes, considered as the same. However, they have different meaning and weight. For further understanding and avoid confusion, written below are the definition and kinds of the two mentioned technical terms turned jargons due to this pandemic.
Lockdown
A lockdown pertains to a process utilized by the higher authorities due to a direct threat to the masses. It is considered as one of a state’s emergency program in order to stop people or particular pieces of information to go out from an certain place for protection. It is typically ordered by a person of authority, such as the president, mayor, governor, and such.
Types of Lockdown
- Drill lockdown
Drill lockdown refers to the locking the all the doors of a particular building in order to stop people from entering and exiting the facility.
- Full lockdown
Full lockdown pertains to the situation where people are obliged to stay in their homes or in their current shelter for their safety and protection. They should never leave the premises until the order is lifted.
- Preventive lockdown
Preventive lockdown means that a contingency plan is being enforced in order to deal with an unconventional event or a fragility in system to prevent risk and hazard. The priority of this lockdown is the safety and security of the public, government, and any other affected ones.
- Emergency lockdown
Emergency lockdown is the kind of lockdown that is carried out when there is a presence of a forthcoming threat that can jeopardize the health, safety, and lives of humans and other living creatures in a certain place. The duration of this order must remain brief and simple in order to control the status of a real crisis.
Quarantine
Some Recorded Quarantines in History Caused by Contagious Diseases
- Eyam Village in 1665 due to plague
Eyam Village is a place in Derbyshire, England that was one of the many areas stricken by the last bubonic plague. It started in the year 1665 when a good amount of cloth was landed in the village brought for one of the area’s local tailor from London. The clothes were already infested by fleas, which first killed the tailor’s assistant and spread throughout the village suddenly. The village was quarantined and social distancing was also imposed. The village was plague-free after 14 months.
- Mary Mallon in 1907-1938 due to typhoid fever
An Irish cook named Mary Mallon was discovered to be the carrier of bacterium called Salmonella enterica subsp. Enterica. This bacterium is known to be responsible for causing typhoid fever. Mary was later on called “Typhoid Mary” for having infected a total 51 people. She was put on forced isolation two times, first was from 1907 to 1910 while the second was from 1915-1938. She died in 1938 and when her body was autopsied, the bacteria that causes typhoid fever was found in her gallbladder.
- East Samoa in 1918 due to Spanish flu
East Samoa is located a territory of the United States that was not infected by the influenza virus back in 1918. When the pandemic broke, governor John Martin Poyer of the government of American Samoa commanded a total quarantine of the island from every arriving ships. Thus, there were no reported deaths within the place.
- Hubei, China; Italy; and other countries in the world in 2020-ongoing due to Covid19
Hubei is a province in China where Wuhan as its capital city. It was considered as the ground zero of the novel coronavirus before it reached Italy. Thousands of people have been infected by the disease. Some recovered but others did not make it. China first implemented quarantine and a full lockdown later on as an action to contain the virus. As of March, China have been reported to be clear of the virus and everyone that were infected have recovered. WHO has been monitoring the cases in Wuhan and there were no reported cases for two straight days. Italy, on the other hand, has been badly stricken by COVID19 and have surpassed China’s death toll. There are also other countries that are dealing with the novel coronavirus, such as Philippines, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and more.
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