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Orla Hegarty

@Orla_Hegarty

19 Oct

@jljcolorado

[Thread] Will #Level5 work?

Contacts between people are not all high-risk, & research says that most people with #COVID19 only transmit to 1 other person or fewer.. ‘It’s often not very contagious’ 1/

[ @jljcolorado cires1.colorado.edu/jimenez/COVID/… ]

@svscarpino

..but a small number of people with covid (less than 20%) are likely infecting more than 80% of new cases... ‘preventing superspreader events could go a long way toward stopping COVID-19’ 2/

[ @svscarpino scientificamerican.com/article/how-su… ]

..Germany’s top doctor
‘Most people only pass it to one other.. occasionally, someone spreads more widely, creating a cluster of infections that drives the pandemic. To avoid another lockdown Germany must focus on identifying & preventing clusters’ bloomberg.com/news/features/… 3/

[

Read 14 tweets

Orla Hegarty

@Orla_Hegarty

18 Oct

@who

‘If you need to be right before you move you will never win’ @who Dr Mike Ryan

HPSC acknowledges airborne spread of #Covid19 virus beyond 2m in poor ventilation, but give no public health warning because its ‘still uncertain..no conclusive proof.. further research needed’

.. so no preventative action in homes, cars, nursing homes
hpsc.ie/a-z/respirator…

https://twitter.com/orla_hegarty/status/1316276288278212610

meanwhile high risk sectors have inconsistent, unsafe & out of date ‘rules of thumb’ & no warnings at all for homes, shops, cars & public transport

https://twitter.com/orla_hegarty/status/1316276288278212610

Read 4 tweets

Orla Hegarty

@Orla_Hegarty

14 Oct

[Thread] Clean air & Ireland’s inconsistent #Covid19 rules 1/

‘possibility of airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through aerosols is still uncertain..no conclusive proof..further research needed’ HPSC, 22 Sept

^known very high risk & there’s evidence hpsc.ie/a-z/respirator…

..but ‘crowded indoor spaces have been shown to be associated with increased transmission.. determining what is due to proximity & poor hygiene practices, & what is ~due to poor ventilation~ though, is difficult’

^so, risk of spread due to poor ventilation is accepted by HPSC 2/

..but, no rules from HSPC, just ‘suggestions, specifically for commercial & public buildings’ ..& only for mech ventilation, which is small % of all buildings ..but ‘residential & healthcare settings fall outside the scope of HPSC document’ ..& very limited advice for schools 3/

Read 14 tweets

Orla Hegarty

@Orla_Hegarty

11 Oct

#Covid19 High risk (yellow) zone at temperatures 5-11°C (spring & autumn)

An urgent public health message about clean indoor air & #ventilation (not fines & roadblocks) can have immediate impact on virus spread & prevent cases

WHO: ‘we are very concerned about rise in cases in Europe as it heads into winter’

‘Colder weather leads to behaviours that favour transmission of a respiratory virus- people tend to crowd indoors to stay warm, more often in poorly ventilated spaces’ smh.com.au/politics/feder…

‘overwhelming evidence that *inhalation* represents a major transmission route’

‘we urge public health officials to add clear guidance about importance of moving activities outdoors, improving indoor air & improving protection for high-risk workers’ science.sciencemag.org/content/early/…

Read 7 tweets

Orla Hegarty

@Orla_Hegarty

29 Feb

Explainer: Why the changes to Irish fire regs for ‘open-plan flats’ put lives at risk

(could be a long thread, please bear with me, this is ~most critically important~ issue for discussions about our future housing, & it’s not getting any attention

video is a recent rescue in Los Angeles, from 6th floor balcony of 25 storey building, in daylight, attended by 20 fire-trucks & rescue helicopter, in a fire-sprinklered & regulated building; 7 people & a baby injured, 10 homes burnt
(this is all important later in the thread) 2/

Typical 2-bedroom flat before reg changes;
note- balcony, hall separating kitchen from bedrooms, direct escape from bedrooms (not through kitchen), opening windows; + short main corridors with escape stairs every 6ish flats (kitchen, esp oil fire is a high-fire risk area) 3/

Read 21 tweets

Orla Hegarty

@Orla_Hegarty

15 Feb

[Thread] Better than sprawl, better than high rise. Housing communities that are sustainable, affordable & beautiful places to live.
Norwich, UK. Award winning, low energy, low build cost, high density social housing 1/