COVID-19: Some city residents with high infection rates “ignore advice” and “pile up together” | UK News

On Ocean Road in South Shields, the person next to you is four times more likely to have COVID-19 than on the average shopping street in England.

It is a city with some of the highest levels of deprivation in the country, where vaccination rates, like life opportunities, are lower than in many other places.

Len, a 78-year-old retired shipyard sheet metal worker, walked through downtown with a mask, having suffered both of his strokes.

He declined to give his last name but did not hesitate to criticize those who would not take the virus seriously.

“There are many people who ignore the advice given, walk around without a mask [and] pile up, ”he said.

Reflecting on what might be behind the behavior that is spreading the virus so quickly here, he suggested that poverty might be a factor.

Then he added, “A lot of them it’s just bravado, a ‘It won’t happen to me’ attitude, some of them don’t care anyway.”

Joey Arnetti, a wheelchair user with multiple health issues since an accident at work 20 years ago, has strong opinions on the high transmission rates and the Prime Minister’s decision to remove mandatory restrictions from Monday.

“It’s going to flood more people with COVID, and that scares me,” she said.

“I don’t want it, I’ve done shielding twice.”

Paul Hedley, chef at Tuscano’s restaurant in the city center, has condemned those who reject the virus but said they are entitled to their opinions.

“I have a friend who is completely against all of this and I think he’s a jerk,” he said.

“I will continue to wear my mask, it is a personal choice.”

The South Tyneside Council released a statement on its website telling people, “Now is the time for us to learn how to live safely with COVID.”

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