Former acting Minister of Health of Ukraine, Ulyana Suprun, told how she and her husband were dropped off halfway by an Uber taxi driver because they asked to open the window to reduce the possibility of contracting the coronavirus in the car.
Suprun told about this on her Facebook page.
"Everyone already knows that the SARS-CoV-2 virus is transmitted by airborne droplets. Most likely, this can happen with prolonged contact (more than 15 minutes) and at a close distance (less than 1,5 meters) from an infected person. It is even more likely that this will happen in a small and poorly ventilated room. For example, in a taxi," wrote Suprun.
The former head of the Ministry of Health said that it became known about the need to ensure air circulation in the car in order to protect oneself from the coronavirus after the publication of the results of a small study in early December.
"Researchers created a computer model that simulated the flow of air inside a compact car. Based on this model, they simulated various driving scenarios in a car: with open windows and closed windows. The goal was to determine the safest way to drive. The model that demonstrated the flow of air with open windows showed a low concentration of airborne particles that could theoretically transmit the virus between people. But the worst scenario turned out to be driving with tightly closed windows and air conditioning or heating," said Suprun.
According to her, based on research data, she and her husband Mark ask the drivers to open at least one window a little every time they take a taxi.
"Today they did the same - they asked to lower the glass on one window by 2 centimeters. But the driver said that he did not want to do this because of the draft. And he is afraid of getting sick. Then we told him that dangerous pathogens are not transmitted from a draft, unlike stuffy air.
We tried to tell about the research, but he didn't want to hear us — instead, he offered to get out of the car halfway. The driver was more afraid of the mythical draft than the real Covid-19,” complained Suprun.
According to her, the story ended with the fact that they released a second Uber taxi, where the driver opened the window after the appropriate request and drove them to their destination.
