The total population of Italy is 60.3 million of which 22% are 65+ years of age. By comparison, the Bahamas has a total population of 394,200 of which 8% are age 65 or older.

Italy has had 132,500 confirmed cases of Covid-19 thus far of which 13,800 have died. The infection rate and death rate for Italy so far is therefore 0.22% (132,500/60,300,000) and 10.4% (13,800/132,500), respectively.

Assuming the Bahamas and Italy have tested roughly the same percentage level of their respective total populations, and extrapolating the Italian statistics to date to the Bahamas, this would indicate at least 866 persons in the Bahamas are currently infected of which about 90 will die. but this is very misleading for the following reasons.

We have a much more dense population (number of people per square mile) than Italy because most of our population resides on the relatively small island of New Providence. We also do not have and will never have anywhere near the healthcare resources that Italy has had available to it. The only 'good' news for the Bahamas is that the percentage of Italy's population age 65 and over is 2.75 times greater than that of the Bahamas. These three very significant factors alone will likely contribute to the infection and death rates for the Bahamas being about twice those of Italy.

In crunching the numbers, this means the Bahamas may currently have 1,734 infected persons (0.44% x 394,200), of which 360 of them (20.8% x 1,734) can be expected to die within the next 6 weeks or so. This picture could have been very different had Minnis acted much sooner to the writing that was was so clearly on the wall. But that's all water under the bridge or should I say lives to be lost now.

Looney tune mitigation measures that panic the public into crowded situations will of course make these numbers much worse.

But in the case of coronaviruses, quite often the second wave of the virus is a slightly mutated but much deadlier strain of the first wave's virus. And all of South America is expected to be ablaze with the Red China Virus in their peak winter months of July, August and September.

Couldn't agree more.

Right you are, but in a country like ours the government would have had to procure and distribute the facial masks or coverings free of charge. That would have taken our elected buffoons and incompetent senior officials in our civil workforce more than a year to get organized and even then they would have somehow failed on the execution of the task.

Ditto that....truly sad case of lethal stupidity.

> Dr Sands said if the nation continues on this path, the healthcare system will be overwhelmed and unable to meet mounting demands.

And just think, it didn't have to be this way.

One thing is for sure.....the panic situation being caused by Minnis at the foodstores is going to spread the Red China Virus among all Bahamian communities like a raging out-of-control wild fire. Foolish decisions aimed at mitigating the spread of the Red China Virus will produce very serious unintended consequences.

The other thing that's for sure, is that with each passing day now more and more people are becoming desperate. Minnis needs to think much more about how to sensibly release the explosive amount of pressure being built up in the pressure cooker before it's too late.

At no time in our country's history have we had a greater need for a leader capable of making well thought through difficult decisions while at the same time doing what's necessary to instill calm and gain the confidence of the Bahamian people.

That's because you too, like @stillwaters above, are probably much better off than the 99% with no doubt a very full refrigerator and freezer at home. Are you too the kind of person who looks down on the vast majority of Bahamians who have been left impoverished by decades of corrupt elected officials and equally corrupt senior civil servants? Are these people, including the less fortunate and disabled, your so called whiners? Perhaps you think of them in their great time of need as the deplorables.

That's because you're much better off than the 99% with no doubt a very full refrigerator and freezer at home. Are you the kind of person who looks down on the vast majority of Bahamians who have been left impoverished by decades of corrupt elected officials and equally corrupt senior civil servants? Are these people, including the less fortunate and disabled, your so called whiners?

You try run a food store.....the business wouldn't last a week! And then where will the people go to buy what little food they can afford? The vast majority of Bahamians do not have well stocked refrigerators and freezers in the homes. Hell, many don't even have a home!