One year on: the sadness of Birmingham's story of coronavirus
| Published date | 05 March 2021 |
It's 12 months to the day since a press conference was called at Birmingham's Council House to tell the region's media that the first, dreaded case of coronavirus had been confirmed in the West Midlands, involving a parent who had returned from a business conference with symptoms.
None of us then could have envisaged the year that has unfolded since -a year filled with sadness and uncertainty as a tiny, easily transmitted virus wrought havoc and affected every single aspect of our daily lives.
Businesses have been locked down, some never to return; jobs have been furloughed, some lost for good; and then there's the horrific toll of deaths involving Covid-19.
Across the country, 125,000 lives have been claimed -here the death toll across six local council areas numbered 6,712 at the last reliable count, up to February 19.
This is the story of an unforgettable year in the history of Birmingham, Solihull and the Black Country.
The first deaths
The progress of the virus was rapid after the emergence of the first case in the city, on March 5, and subsequent cases in neighbouring Sandwell, Walsall, Dudley, Wolverhampton and Solihull.
By March 13, any hopes of containing the virus had been abandoned.
Hundreds of patients were moved out of acute beds in a bid to free up space for the expected influx of Covid patients. They were discharged to community hospitals and care homes in a gargantuan effort to 'protect the NHS'
Care homes were beginning to close their doors to visitors in a bid to protect vulnerable residents
Shops were being raided, with loo roll, hand sanitiser and pasta top of the shopping lists. There was furious panic buying, and an equally furious backlash against selfish shoppers.
Parents were beginning to keep their kids off school, not prepared to wait for an official shutdown that eventually came 10 days later.
Access to vital Personal Protective Equipment PPE was being coordinated by the NHS centrally but there were already growing murmurs of concern about its availability in local hospitals and care settings
Across Birmingham, community groups and charities joined forces to prepare for what was ahead. Neighbours made plans; local activists met up to coordinate activity.
By March 13, there had been two deaths from the virus in Birmingham and Sandwell -but more and more people were falling ill.
In the days that followed, large gatherings were banned and we were all encouraged to keep our social distance.
GP surgeries were beginning to close, instead providing online consultations, along with dentists and non urgent health care settings. Get togethers were heavily restricted, setting the scene for one of the most heartbreaking impacts of the virus -near empty funerals.
Venues began to shut, and pubs and restaurants were reconciled to their fate; a locked down Spring.
Birmingham City Council and its neighbours embarked on an epic mission to ensure all homeless people were protected, putting hundreds into temporary accommodation and taking over a city centre hotel for rough sleepers.
Specialist teams also worked together to put in protective measures and support other vulnerable groups, including drug addicts and sex workers.
In Birmingham, the annual St Patrick's Day parade was cancelled. Due to be held on the weekend of March 15, the organisers took the heart breaking decision to postpone it.
The city's spiritual leaders also coordinated closures of all places of worship to protect their congregations.
For Birmingham Central Mosque, it was the first time that prayer services were not held in 50 years.
Muslim communities have since had to endure a muted Ramadan and Eid celebrations, practising their faith and celebrating at home. Other faith communities have had to miss out on traditional gatherings including Easter.
Amid all this frenzied activity, plans to ramp up testing were mothballed. It was a decision that has since come under scrutiny and attracted critics,particularly as we later had to fight to establish Test and Trace systems 'from zero'.
Into Lockdown
Lockdown came on March 23. In a televised address, Boris Johnson told us lockdown was being implemented. The message was clear: Stay Home. Save Lives. Protect the NHS.
That...
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