//LILLY REICHER//

The coronavirus has shut down cities, cleared out entire regions and instilled absolute panic throughout every square foot of China and is progressively spreading to other countries. The coronavirus, formally originating in Wuhan, China has killed over 560 people since the first case on Jan. 8, 2020. So far out of the tens of thousands infected, 12 of them have reached the United States, according to data from Johns Hopkins.

Reportedly, the sickness comes from the consumption of snakes, the Chinese cobra and Chinese krait, to be exact. However, this is merely a hypothesis. The only proof comes from the first group of victims who were all workers at a local seafood market that provided live animals for eating. Either way, the virus was born in the genes of an animal and attached to the human’s system upon being ingested.  

The coronavirus mainly affects the respiratory system and spreads through touching and airborne germs. This means that if you get any closer than 3 feet to an infected person and they do as little as sneeze or cough under their breath, expect a full-fledged invasion because there is a 50% chance that you will be contaminated. Sayonara Super Bowl attendees, the 49ers weren’t the only numbers we were worried about. 

Before you go out and buy your surgeon masks and deep clean your entire body, consider this: Most of the deaths from the coronavirus are older men in their 70s or 80s who have had previous health issues in the past, making their immune system vulnerable and susceptible to illness. If they would get any sickness such as tuberculosis or pneumonia, they would most likely have the same unfortunate fate.

In 2019, 61,000 people died from the flu in the United States. That means approximately for every day of the year, 167 people passed away. In comparison, as of Feb. 6, 2020, 565 people have died from the coronavirus from the first case (28 days ago.) That means for every one day, 20 people have perished compared to the 167 that the flu affected per day.

I’m not trying to reduce the passings of these people as just a number, but for relativity’s sake, we don’t have that much to worry about. The maneuvers in technology and medical fields make the chance of a widespread, deadly virus about as likely as finding someone who can correctly spell ‘maneuver.’ So keep your head up America, unless you’re coughing. Maybe look down for that one.