I don't know about you guys, but I would definitely advise you to take the mask-wearing, handwashing and social distancing SERIOUSLY, especially over the next couple of weeks, if not more! I'm saying this because our store just lost it's first casualty to COVID-19...One of our baggers, an older gentleman, we found out today, was too ill and was in ICU at one of the local hospitals...They had to take him off the life support and he passed away...A few weeks back in March, I remember him crushing some cardboard at the baler and he had this dry cough...He said it was just an allergy cough and he had it before...I was a little concerned when he didn't cough into his sleeve, but I still stayed a good six feet away as much as possible...Still, I didn't get NEAR the baler for the rest of the day...I've had issues with high blood pressure and after a couple days, I had my own problem...My BP unexpectedly skyrocketed...I had to go to the hospital because I feared the worst when it got TOO high after a couple of days...I've never been on blood pressure medication, but I am now...I'd been trying to get a hold of my doctor over that weekend, but couldn't reach him, so the doctors in ER gave me a prescription for some BP meds...I was surrounded by people going back and forth and patients being wheeled in front of me and alongside of me...This was early in the COVID days before the hospitals filled up...I did wear a mask but they sent me home with that prescription...I started on the BP meds right away, but still, I didn't know what I'd been exposed to and COVID does not act well with people with high BP, so to play it safe, I decided to take a week off and got a doctor's note, too...Well, I came back after a week, feeling better, and I found out that a couple days after I went out, this bagger was sent home, too, due to coughing too much...Well, we didn't hear anything about him until today, when our front end customer service manager called his family and found out that he'd been let off of life support today...The last thing I remember was being irked by his cough and didn't want to catch what he had...I heard that another store in our district also lost one of their team members, too...I've been back to work now a week and a half or so after being out a week and I have this slight dry cough that comes and goes...I think it may be due to some postnasal drip I've had before and sinus issues and drainage troubles (I've also had allergy issues this time of year before), but the idea that he passed away from this virus still terrifies me..I should also mention that my store manager has been on leave for a couple of weeks, too, but should be returning soon or so I hear...He had a fever, but quarantined himself to protect everyone else....I haven't had a fever and am relatively middle-aged, but I'm still very careful to wear my mask at work, wash my hands frequently, wear gloves, and disinfect and clean everything before bringing it into the house, including my uniform every day...They did have a cleaning crew come in and clean and sanitize everything after this bagger went home (so they say), but...Am I right to worry about this, even after a few weeks?
I don't know about you guys, but I would definitely advise you to take the mask-wearing, handwashing and social distancing SERIOUSLY, especially over the next couple of weeks, if not more! I'm saying this because our store just lost it's first casualty to COVID-19...One of our baggers, an older gentleman, we found out today, was too ill and was in ICU at one of the local hospitals...They had to take him off the life support and he passed away...A few weeks back in March, I remember him crushing some cardboard at the baler and he had this dry cough...He said it was just an allergy cough and he had it before...I was a little concerned when he didn't cough into his sleeve, but I still stayed a good six feet away as much as possible...Still, I didn't get NEAR the baler for the rest of the day...I've had issues with high blood pressure and after a couple days, I had my own problem...My BP unexpectedly skyrocketed...I had to go to the hospital because I feared the worst when it got TOO high after a couple of days...I've never been on blood pressure medication, but I am now...I'd been trying to get a hold of my doctor over that weekend, but couldn't reach him, so the doctors in ER gave me a prescription for some BP meds...I was surrounded by people going back and forth and patients being wheeled in front of me and alongside of me...This was early in the COVID days before the hospitals filled up...I did wear a mask but they sent me home with that prescription...I started on the BP meds right away, but still, I didn't know what I'd been exposed to and COVID does not act well with people with high BP, so to play it safe, I decided to take a week off and got a doctor's note, too...Well, I came back after a week, feeling better, and I found out that a couple days after I went out, this bagger was sent home, too, due to coughing too much...Well, we didn't hear anything about him until today, when our front end customer service manager called his family and found out that he'd been let off of life support today...The last thing I remember was being irked by his cough and didn't want to catch what he had...I heard that another store in our district also lost one of their team members, too...I've been back to work now a week and a half or so after being out a week and I have this slight dry cough that comes and goes...I think it may be due to some postnasal drip I've had before and sinus issues and drainage troubles (I've also had allergy issues this time of year before), but the idea that he passed away from this virus still terrifies me..I should also mention that my store manager has been on leave for a couple of weeks, too, but should be returning soon or so I hear...He had a fever, but quarantined himself to protect everyone else....I haven't had a fever and am relatively middle-aged, but I'm still very careful to wear my mask at work, wash my hands frequently, wear gloves, and disinfect and clean everything before bringing it into the house, including my uniform every day...They did have a cleaning crew come in and clean and sanitize everything after this bagger went home (so they say), but...Am I right to worry about this, even after a few weeks?
So two Kroger employees died in the same district? Where is this district located?
OP here...The district is in Oakland County, Michigan...This area (with Wayne County and Detroit) is kind of a hotspot right now, as are places like Louisiana, New York and the Southern states, although other areas could be affected in the coming weeks, too...All I can say is play it safe out there, guys...I've talked to my doctor and am taking cough drops and drinking herbal tea...He didn't seem too concerned about the cough, due to the fact that this IS allergy season and I've had issues before, so he's got me on an allergy medicine, a 90-day supply of the BP meds and just told me to monitor my symptoms...I still have no fever and that was his main worry...It's easy to overreact now with all that's going on, but even a cough can be a lot of other things...the common cold, flu, allergies, dust in the air or dry air...I'm a little irked, though, about one thing...My co-manager suggested each department keep a can of Lysol spray to spray on areas like the baler buttons, handles, faucets and light switches as an added precaution and we can store expense the Lysol...Well, turns out that we didn't even have any of THAT on the shelves...I might have to bring my own can from home! Anyone else still struggling with stock-out issues or empty shelves of cleaning products, sanitizer, alcohol, peroxide, bleach, etc.?
I'm more concerned about what's happening to the economy with businesses being ordered to close. Many of them won't be able to recover. People can't pay their mortgage or their rent or utilities. You might say a person should be able to live rent free or get free utilities during these times, but your landlord, and the people like you and me who are working at places like mortgage companies or utilities need their paychecks too. Yes, the disease is serious and it needs to be brought under control but it's only affecting a fraction of a percent of the total population. If things don't get back to normal soon, the "cure" is going to cause more harm than the disease itself.
