Photo-a-Day  (Tuesday, 26th January, 2021)

No social distancing there

How sad looks like a lot of shops are empty, all the shops used to be thriving in the 60s 70s 80s everything is declining not just Wigan its everywhere. At least people can get their covid jabs that is one good thing that has come out of this by using empty pre shops.

I would have thought dogs would have to go to the vets for their Covid injections

What is it that people dont know what 2 metres distance is ???

I wonder where they go for the 15 minutes after the jab. I had mine done on Saturday , we had to retire to a big Marquee. I hope the dog wasn't stolen, it's happening quite a lot these days. It's not safe to leave dogs tied up.

What a sad sight. Julie is right, everywhere is declining. I'm glad I remember Mesnes Street in the sixties. My grandchildren have only ever known it like this.

I go there for my second jab in April, the Hollowood chemists, formerly Salters, my first is at the Hollowood Haydock branch on Thursday.
JULIE, i'm afraid things in that respect will only get worse, CLICKS have replaced BRICKS unfortunately.

A lesson in how to pack as many people within 2 metres as possible . If they caught the virus in that queque ; now that would be ironic wouldn't it ?
When historians come to analyse the cause of the obscene death rate in this country , this photo will help them to a conclusion .

Helen, people will only know what 2 meters distance is.When they get the virus.Its a case of "It won't happen to me" Very selfish.

Social distancing has been brought down to just one meter now, the second couple in the queue are a mother and daughter who live together.

The Hollowood chemists are giving the 'Oxford - AstraZeneca' vaccine which, it's been reported, can be less than 8% effective in over 65 years age groups.
Now they're slowing down supply? There's too many 'if's, why's and maybe's' with all these vaccines. I'm uneasy.

Yes Irene it is very very sad what has become of Wigan in our times and Rot to, it is heart breaking remembering how Wigan once was.

I agree with John, the headlines are full of might be, could do, and maybe's the headline writers don't know what's going to happen so they just fill the pages up with supposition. The daft thing about it is, people are still buying the rubbish that they print.

JOHN, that 'rubbish' came from 2 German newspapers.
Germany and AstraZeneca have both denied media reports that it is less effective in the over 65's, with the pharmaceutical giant calling the claim completely incorrect. The German health ministry said the claims made in the papers were unfounded,' suggesting the the data does not support any suggestion of impaired performance of the jab in older people.

You are so right Tommy T....so much rubbish is being spouted by the media & as you say, silly fools take it as truth.

The idiot German who made the 8% effective comment about AstraZeneca vaccine has withdrawn these comments.He had NO evidence.
Very dangerous to propagate these rumours .

PS
I have just read out some of your comments to the man in my life....he says '' tell people who dont know what 2 metres is...its about as long as a coffin''

When I finally get a invitation for a jab , I'm taking my 2 metre cattle prod with me .

Tell him, well said Helen

Good point Helen. Ironically i'm due down there later tonight with my Mother in Law as she's down for her first shot. Strange seeing this today as PaD :)

A vaccine, created, tested and found to be safe, in a matter of months?

It's usual for a virus to pass it's peak before a successful, and safe, vaccine is found.

Clinical trials start with tens of patients. With success in each phase, the trial is expanded—from hundreds to thousands to, finally, tens of thousands.
At each phase, scientists have to collect a lot of data and analyse it to be sure that the vaccine is doing what it should in humans and there are no nasty side effects.
This takes time, and in that time often an epidemic crosses its peak.

So, although it’s great news we are making progress on a vaccine, it isn't usually ready in time to stop the disease spreading.

Given it normally takes more than 10 years to develop a vaccine, it’s a small miracle that we can get close to developing one in an emergency in less than three years.

I would rather have the vaccine than take a chance not having it. It could always be improved on as time goes on. Very witty statement Helen. A warning as well as a measurement ...

After this , I hope the government announces it is putting up taxes to fund medical research .
Front line workers in the NHS , see and deal with the consequences of diseases like Covid , but it is the men and women in white coats ,
whose brains provide them with the weapons of treatment . When we rightly applaud the front line workers , let us also , more than cast a thought for the scientists looking for vaccines etc .

George, scientists have been working on vaccines for respiratory diseases for decades. Covid 19 is another disease linked to the sars corona-viruses which has been around since 2003. To produce an effective vaccine for this wouldn't be a 'start from scratch' issue. That's why it's not took them as long as usual. We don't know what's happening 'behind the screens' because, in normal circumstances, we don't need to know.

What happens if you refuse the vaccine and then later need to go into hospital for a routine operation, eg a cataract? Can they refuse to admit you if you have chosen not to have the covid vaccine?

I had my vaccine two weeks ago..both me and my Son had the Covid two months ago ,and I do not want it again,it isn't nice at all..my health still isn't as it was before,so roll on the second one.

It's very doubtful, Irene. But that, in a way, casts light on how and why so many people are being classified as having 'died with Covid'.
Since last June, everybody admitted to hospital has been Covid tested. Not once, every 14 days.
Given that the most likely place for a person to contract Covid infection is in hospitals, does it not follow that anybody dying in hospital, for any reason, will be highly likely to have previously tested positive for Covid infection? This, along with the fact that the majority of Covid positive tested patients do not show symptoms or may have mild symptoms, shows that the majority of patients dying in hospital will have died 'with' Covid rather then 'from' Covid.
That proves the figures given are far from transparent.

That photo shows just how many rooms aren't used above shops in Wigan. A waste of space. It's a disgrace when one considers how many people are homeless. Surely the properties could be modified in some way to allow tenants?

My Mother in Law had her jab in here and I can report, it was very efficient,
well spaced out and very very polite. No queue outside, straight in, papers checked, jab administered the the 15 mins ( spread out ) wait to check for adverse effects, which there were non. A very well run establishment, she's due back again in early April for No2.