The one thing that is on everyone’s mind (whether they know it or not) is this god-forsaken coronavirus that has spread around the world. Now that it has (mildly) hit our islands here’s everything you should know.

Now that COVID-19 has hit Malta, here’s everything you should know

1. Six people

As of this morning, there are six cases of the Coronavirus: a family of three, a foreign guy and his 16-year-old daughter, and another man. The one thing they all had in common was that they travelled to northern Italy. No need to panic, ruhi. It's six out of 450,000+ people. Inzommu ruhna kalmi!

2. Take necessary precautions

Scrub-adub-dub bitches. As advised by the big bosses, wash your hands regularly. As my gran would say - trid torok sew!! If you need to sneeze, your new bestie is your elbow (sorry hands, we gotta go our own way for a while). And then put a chunkload of sanitizer to ensure you're squeaky clean.

3. Travelling has taken a hit

Sad, we know. Flights to and from Italy have been cancelled and the Catamaran between Sicily and Malta will only be operating to bring in meds, merch and food. While there is no official travel ban yet, maybe you might want to reconsider that trip you've planned. 

4. Mater Dei has upped its game

The local hospital announced yesterday that visiting hours have been restriction to 11.30am-12pm (noon) and 5pm-6pm Monday to Sunday with one visitor allowed per visit. It has been said that everyone entering the hospital is being screened accordingly. Better safe than sorry!

5. Education is still strong

Sorry kids! While many children would love a good excuse not to go to school for a while, none have been closed – yet. It’s business as usual so far at University, too in terms of lectures. However, international events, conferences and lectures have been cancelled.

6. Mass gatherings have been called off

This hurts our inner boozey soul/ Yup, St Paddy’s has indeed been called off. Outdoor gatherings of more than 2,000 people are not permissible, while those indoors can host up to 750 people. So maybe crack open a bottle at home instead?

7. We’re not on lockdown

Unlike our friends over in Italy, Malta isn’t on lockdown, and so far, things operating relatively as usual. If you're currently on lockdown in Italian regions - we wish you the best of luck.

8. Supermarkets are stocked

Don’t worry, there is plenty of food to go around so we don’t need a repeat of last week when never-ending queues lined supermarkets, and shelves were left empty. Calm down, people. We know how much you love food - we do too! Y’all will eat. Tinkwetawx!

9. Pharmacies

If you're out of face masks, sanitizers, wipes and the lot and need to make a trip to your local pharmacy, keep calm bros! Pharmacies are implementing a courtesy line where patients and customers need to wait until a pharmacist of sales assistant asks them to step forward. 

10. Health officials are on it

Doctors, nurses, and everyone in the health department and beyond are working tirelessly. They’re doing their jobs as efficiently as they can. Thank you for all you do!

See? There’s no reason to panic. Remaining calm and following the health and governmental directives is the best thing we can do. We’re still on the hunt for hand sanitizer, though!