Published 5:01 pm Thursday, June 27, 2024 By Al Klemm After about 5 years, it is a good time to reflect on COVID-19 and the damage it has done. I am not a doctor so my opinion may not be sound on certain items. The COVID-19 pandemic is fading into its 5 th year.
I honestly thought it was gone but people are still getting it. Adults over 65 are still advised to get another dose of the vaccine. The variants of COVID which exist are less dangerous than it was in the beginning although older people can still become hospitalized and die from the virus.
In the beginning, I used to follow the number of COVID cases on the Washington Daily News website. COVID basically did not exist in Beaufort County but then a lot of people got sick and died. The Mayor of Washington, Mac Hodges, was the first notable person I knew who died.
To me, Mac appeared to be a very healthy person. Most everyone, including me, miss Mac Hodges. I thought he had become the face of Washington.
The number of deaths increased and almost everyone was wearing a mask. Old people in particular were targeted by COVID. Rest homes were hit particularly hard.
The schools were closed. Only Walmart, Lowes, the drugstores and food markets were open. Small businesses, restaurants, and most other stores were shut.
Beaufort County and North Carolina were shut down. Other states like New Jersey, where my brother lived, was even more restrictive. It is possible to get COVID-19 if small droplets or particles of the virus enter the.
