Wondering how dangerous the Coronavirus truly is? Take a look at the risk comparison of the Coronavirus versus driving a car.
Do you know about 3,700 people die per day from __???___
Do you know what we are referring to that kills them? Is it the coronavirus that everyone’s talking about? No, we’re not talking about the pandemic here.
So many people die. We should be concerned about it. We need to get that number down. But it is not on the news every second of everyday.
We are, and we’re working on it, but we aren’t shutting down the world to do it. This killer has nothing to do with the current epidemic.
Have you figured out what it is? Keep reading to find out if you’re right.
A Little Bit of Perspective
At the time of this writing, the novel coronavirus deaths worldwide had reached 42,151. By the time you read this, the number will likely be higher. The number of deaths is growing exponentially. The experts keep changing their estimates, but the current model is projecting between 100,000 and 240,000 deaths in the U.S.
But let’s look at how many deaths per day that averages out to. From January 23 to March 31, 42,151 works out to just under 630 per day — for now. While that number has the potential for increasing as time goes on, it has a long way to go before it reaches 3,700 per day.
So what is the killer we’re talking about here?
Cars
More specifically, car accidents. About 1.35 million people die per year worldwide in car crashes. This works out to approximately 3,700 deaths per day.
If the news reported on this the way they report on coronavirus deaths, everyone would be deathly afraid to step into a car. But they don’t and we keep driving around every day.
What Are Your Chances of Dying?
The death rate for COVID-19 has been all over the place. Some countries, such as the UK at 5%, are reporting a scarily high percentage. However, the death rate is most likely skewed due to not knowing how many people have mild cases of the coronavirus.
Without the right denominator to divide by, there’s really no way to know for sure. However, the Imperial College in London is putting the average at between 0.5% and 1%. That means your chances of dying is somewhere between 1 in 100 and 1 in 200.
Although, as you’ve probably heard, the mortality rate is significantly higher among elderly people or those with underlying health conditions. If you are in one of these groups you should take more vigorous measures to protect yourself, but still understand that your individual chances of death are low.
To accurately understand your chances of dying from the illness, you also have to know your chances of catching it in the first place. With social distancing measures in place as well as a personal commitment to frequent hand washing and cleaning objects that many people touch, your chances go down significantly.
At this point, there isn’t a way to calculate your chances of getting sick. There are far too many variables and the virus isn’t yet fully understood. But you can assume your chances are low, particularly if you take precautions.
Car accidents have been more fully researched and there is a more definitive number. According to the National Safety Council, you have a 1 in 114 chance of dying in a car accident.
For both risks, take the recommended precautions. Wear your seatbelt, choose a safe car, wash your hands, don’t touch your face, etc. But stop and think for a moment. If you’re not afraid of getting into a car, why are you afraid of the coronavirus?
Why Is Everyone so Scared of the Coronavirus?
Death is a part of life. Everyone will die at some point and we know this, yet it still scares us to think about it.
We can’t turn on the TV, check a smartphone, or open a laptop without being greeted by the latest death toll from the virus. This is why millions of people the world over have responded to the novel coronavirus in fear. They’re shuttering businesses and sequestering themselves in their homes because they are afraid.
But it begs the question, is it worth giving up our way of life? Is COVID-19 really more dangerous than the daily dangers we comfortably live with?
The virus isn’t going away. Social distancing will help slow the spread and give the most people a fighting chance by not flooding the hospitals all at once. But the virus is out there. It is now a part of our world just like all the other viruses and sicknesses that we already face.
Hopefully, we will develop a life-saving treatment or vaccine for the illness in the coming months and the death toll will plateau and drop. It’s likely we’ll see that drop anyway as more people become exposed to the virus and we build up immunity.
But for now, millions of people are losing their jobs, their dreams, their livelihoods, and their families are going hungry. The body count from the quarantine will begin to pile up, depression, suicide, hunger, homelessness, but it probably won’t be talked about much.
Is It Worth It?
Is the coronavirus worth the panic? Maybe not.
Should you take precautions? Yes! There’s absolutely nothing wrong with common sense hygiene that you should be practicing regularly anyway.
Keep calm, WASH YOUR HANDS, and carry on. Don’t be afraid and spread kindness where you can.
We’ll get through this. Together.
Have a Damaged Vehicle?
In the meantime, if you’ve survived a dangerous accident but your car hasn’t, you may be wondering what to do with it. The coronavirus quarantine may be putting a squeeze on your wallet and you just don’t have the funds to fix it.
Lucky for you, you’ve come to the right place. Here at BestPriceCashForCars.com we specialize in offering top prices for damaged cars. We’ll take it off your hands and give you a fair price to boot, something that is often hard to find.
Contact us today to learn more!