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Switzerland implementing drastic measures to curb the spread of Covid-19

Post author By Sascha Frommherz
Post date March 18, 2020
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by Sascha Frommherz

Shelf missing toilet paper in a Swiss grocery store. (Sascha Frommherz, 2020)

On March 17^th Switzerland closed all its land borders. The measure was taken by the Swiss government to try and curb the spread of Covid-19. Switzerland has over 2000 suspected case, 1563 of which are positive, according to the Federal Office of Health (BAG). This has led to the implementation of drastic measures since the first cases were recorded in February 2020.

Major events such as international watch and jewellery fair Baselworld are cancelled until further notice. On March 13^th schools and universities nationwide were closed. All sports events have cancelled until further notice.

Marco Hasler, 39 from Zuzgen, Marketing Manager for watch company Jacques du Manoir says this is done as a preventative measure “to avoid personal contact”.

The Federal Office of Transportation (BAV) has also put restrictions on public transport. It has encouraged people to avoid using it whenever possible. How the lock down will affect public transportation is not yet clear.

Public service and transportation of goods are to be kept up. There will be limitations regarding travel for tourists and the cancelation of onboard food services.

To avoid personal contact and travel by public transport, many employers have instructed their staff to work from home.

Max Zurlino, 29, from Basel, who would under normal circumstances commute to work, says that home office will have “close to no effect” on his work. He says that travelling with public transport in this situation “does not feel safe”.

The Swiss Army has mobilized 8000 men of its medical division to support hospitals and set up temporary medical centres. It has been the biggest mobilization since World War 2.

On March 17^th Switzerland effectively went into lock down for a month. It is not yet clear how far these measures will affect the country. Switzerland’s borders are scheduled to open again on April 30^th.

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“Open Mic” At Telford’s Warehouse- 9/2/2020

Post author By Sascha Frommherz
Post date February 11, 2020
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by Sascha Frommherz

If you live in Chester I’m sure you are familiar with Telford’s Warehouse. The Pub, located at the Canal at Wharf View, is a popular place to have a drink and enjoy the Sunday “Open Mic” sessions, as I did.

I was a bit disapointed to see that Telford’s seemed to be almost empty, with only a few people eating at the tables and drinking at the bar. However, that morning a severe storm had hit Chester.

Even though the dining area lacked people, most of the people that were there had huddled up in the stage area left of the bar, where the event took place.

The atmosphere was great. The musicians seemed just as content as the audience listening to them, with the opening act being a woman, Laura Leigh, who I later learned was a regular at this event. After performing two of, what I presumed to be her own songs, which were quite good. I stayed to watch a few others perform and was not disappointed.

I want to be completely honest here, the atmosphere that these people created was incredible. There was only encouragement and no negativity, something that I have seen before, especially with amateur performers. This of course might be true for some, such as Laura Leigh, who as I mentioned before is a regular at this Sunday event.

All these musicians have to do is sign up on a list, bring their instruments and step on stage where they were greeted by a small then usual but very supportive audience. This was an event everyone, myself included, enjoyed a lot.