Clothing and footwear shops, restaurants, pubs, hotels, motor home parks, tent camping sites, construction sites, church services, cafes, museums, sporting venues, football fields, all schools of education - if a location had the potential to attract a crowd of any type, thereby offering the virus an opportunity to breed, it was ordered closed. Period.
For months, we all had to stick within 5 km of our place of residence. Travel to another Irish county was verboten. Travel abroad, except for extenuating circumstances, was forbidden. Those caught driving to the airport to catch an outbound flight for non-essential reasons were subject to an immediate fine.
Inbound travel sagged as Ireland imposed additional travel restrictions. Today, and as I noted in a previous blog entry, passengers traveling into Ireland from 'red-flag' countries are subject to mandatory hotel quarantine. Those same travelers are responsible for the cost of their stay.
The strict government intervention came as a reaction to the pre-Christmas 2020 opening of the country. Back then, only a few months ago, the Irish government believed that a careful reopening of the country, enabling people to enjoy Christmas in a manner approaching 'normal', would not only help small businesses, but also provide a bit of breathing space to a weary Irish population.
The only problem was that it didn't work. Within weeks, hospitals around the country were filled to capacity with COVID victims. The day after Christmas, on Saint Stephen's Day, the country was closed tight as the government realised its error and fought back.
We've been closed ever since.
But as we continued to count the rising number of virus cases and bury our dead, hope lit the horizon in the form of vaccines. That hope spread like wildfire as Ireland's health services rolled out its vaccination programme. AstraZenica, Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson are names that roll from everyone's lips. As with many people across the world, we greet each other by asking: "Are you scheduled for your jab, yet? Or did you have it? If you had it, what kind did you get? When are you scheduled for your second jab?"
It is a greeting that now looks toward a brighter future, rather than back at a deadly past.
As I write this, almost 30 percent of Ireland's adult population has received at least one dose of a vaccine. We've still a long way to go to ensure full protection. But, the government and our health officials believe that it's enough to start a carefully-considered reopening.
In short, the lights in Ireland are being switched back on.
Those Careful Steps
The reopening of Ireland is happening in planned phases. In April, kids went back to school as the government threw the dice to continue children's education, hoping that the facts where correct and that schools would prove an unlikely place to spread the virus. Fortunately, to date that has paid off. However, college and university on-campus learning is still closed.
Now, we consider additional steps.
On 10 May 2021:
- All construction reopened
- We can travel between counties as local travel restrictions are lifted
- A few people can gather together in houses to visit friends
- 15 people can gather together outside
- Hairdressers reopened
- Galleries, museums and libraries can open their doors
- 50 people can attend Mass or other religious services
On June 2nd, the next phase of reopening kicks in as hotels and B&B's can finally open up. However, what are deemed 'higher risk' activities and businesses including pubs, indoor restaurant dining, indoor team sporting matches, and international travel will just have to wait. The government is talking about reopening these activities sometime in July or August. But it is dependent on new infections, monitoring of COVID variants (such as the new variant that is sweeping India), and the continuing success of the vaccination programme.
Until then we must watch our step.
Disruptors to Patience
Unfortunately, as we all begin to breathe a bit there are some - both inside and outside this country - who continue to put Ireland's reopening in peril.
A few days ago, the HSE (our national health services administration) experienced a serious breach of its IT systems by criminal gangs. The Wizard Spiders, a Eastern European gang of malicious hackers, infected HSE infrastructure with sophisticated Ransomware. Not only have they encrypted vital data and applications, but the organised group is now demanding a reported €20 million to unlock that information - a ransom the government is apparently refusing to pay.
The malware infection has closed most essential hospital services across the country. Patients who had been scheduled to receive vital treatments or scans have found that their appointments have been cancelled. Fortunately, the IT outage has not disrupted the vaccination rollout.
But having to cope with international thuggery isn't Ireland's only challenge as it struggles to reopen. Across the country, it has been reported that some shady businesses are ignoring government regulations. These crooks are putting short-term profit above the health and well-being of their customers. From secret home party gatherings to back-of-a-lane Shebeens where the Guinness has never stopped flowing; motor home parks illicitly welcoming caravans of visitors, to shuttered restaurants offering on-the-sly indoor dining... the owners and managers of these establishments forget a vital fact:
Almost five-thousand people have died from COVID-19 in this country. Their illicit, selfish actions only imperil more lives. Instead of considering their neighbours, I gather these eejits have said to themselves: "Feck it, anyway. I've suffered enough. I'll reopen no matter what the government says."
To these unthinking souls I can only say: "We're so close now. We're almost there, only months away from a safe reopening. Don't be an arse. Instead, do as most Irish do. Stay kind and put the lives of others first."
After all, we've made it this far by sticking together. If we stay together, we'll make it out of this dark hole, and live to see another day.
Mind you, I doubt the illegal eejits will ever listen.
The 2021 - and Final! - Edition of A Survivor's Guide to Living in Ireland
is Now Available on Amazon!
Though the world is a poorer place right now, we still look to the horizon with hope. If you're dreaming of living and working in - or traveling to - Ireland, this book might be for you. At over 90,000 words, A Survivor's Guide to Living in Ireland, 2021, gives readers an insight of what it's like to immigrate to this beautiful country: of how to become a citizen, how to get a job and work visa, how to enjoy a perfect pint of Guinness, and the amazing tapestry that is Ireland.
For more information, visit Amazon and A Survivor's Guide to Living in Ireland, 2021 Edition.
Hope Ireland's reopening goes smoothly. We are staggering forward here in NYC as well.
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