At Koenigsberg & Associates Law Offices, we feel a genuine connection with our clients and our communities throughout New York City. The ongoing COVID-19 quarantine efforts have made a lot of us feel uneasy and stressed, to say the least. Yet we know isolation efforts are crucial now more than ever as the number of cases across NYC continues to rise.
It is our hope that everyone in our communities stays safe and healthy during the coronavirus pandemic. We would like to take this time to share a few quick tips about how you can be safe during the quarantine.
Four safety tips for the coronavirus quarantine in NYC:
- Listen to public health officials: Medical professionals and virologists around the globe are working tirelessly to understand and treat the novel coronavirus, as well as keep the masses safe from its spread. Please respect their authorities on the subject and listen to them first and foremost for COVID-19 safety and advice. Do not solely rely on news outlets, which may misinterpret or misrepresent information. For coronavirus safety measures from respected health organizations, you can click here to visit the World Health Organization (WHO) coronavirus public advice website and here to visit a similar website from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- Avoid public transportation when you can: The New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has upped its efforts to more-frequently sanitize various types of public transportation, such as buses, subway trains, and Access-a-Ride ambulettes. Still, riding public transportation will inherently put you at an increased risk of coming in contact with someone who is sick with COVID-19, or with a surface contaminated with the virus. You should try to avoid public transportation if possible. Doing so will also allow essential workers – like nurses, grocery store clerks, janitorial experts, and more – to take public transportation to work at a lower risk of contracting the virus themselves.
- Beware of exhausted truckers: A decades-old Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regulation that limits how many hours a truck driver can work in a day was recently lifted in light of coronavirus panic hoarding. Truckers who are carrying essential supplies, medical equipment and personnel, and food can drive as many hours as they want in a 24-hour day, up from the previous 11-hour limit. The idea is that an extension to truck driver hours will help replenish stores and medical clinics faster. However, it will also put more exhausted truck drivers on the roads of New York. Please be mindful whenever you are driving near a commercial truck because the trucker behind the wheel could be fatigued from a long day, increasing their risk of causing a trucking accident.
- Pay attention when walking in the city: If you are using the quarantine as an opportunity to walk more for your errands, please pay close attention to your surroundings when you’re walking around New York City or one of the boroughs. Although there might be fewer drivers on the streets, there might also be more pedestrians, which means an increased risk of a pedestrian accident. Keep smartphone use to a minimum when walking, and do not block out all noise in both ears with music played through headphones.
When we all stand together – except a fair distance apart for physical distancing purposes – no one is stronger than a New Yorker. We will get through the coronavirus pandemic with patience, care, and support for one another. Again, from all of us at Koenigsberg & Associates Law Offices, we send positivity and best wishes to you and yours.