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Comment by tshaddox | Hacker News Reader

Note that this is not a direct quote. That bit about COVID-19 appears in a big paragraph about what to do if you’re sick or injured. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a shared boilerplate across lots of government websites about emergencies. This whole page mentions COVID-19 a few times but really isn’t as ludicrous or reminiscent of satire as people here are making it out to be.

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I expect you're right. I think a number of these sections were copied from a similar page on COVID-19, e.g. in the section about preparing early, it refers to the emergency as a pandemic:

> Remember that not everyone can afford to respond by stocking up on necessities. For those who can afford it, making essential purchases and slowly building up supplies in advance will allow for longer time periods between shopping trips. This helps to protect those who are unable to procure essentials in advance of the pandemic and must shop more frequently.

There's also this one talking about a flood under Prepare Now:

> If you are able to, set aside items like soap, hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol, disinfecting wipes, and general household cleaning supplies that you can use to disinfect surfaces you touch regularly. After a flood, you may not have access to these supplies for days or even weeks. Keep in mind each person’s specific needs, including medication.

Most likely this was prepared quickly by pulling content from other preparedness pages. (which is really ok, a lot of preparedness works for most emergencies, although some more editing would be nice)

There's lots of bits about COVID-19, and what I paraphrased came from the part about what to do after you have survived a nuclear explosion.

I think the more likely explanation is simply that it was written by people in disaster management who have a myopic focus on the COVID-19 crisis and a vested interest in keeping COVID under their purview (i.e., to be seen as an ongoing disaster).

Whole new branches of government (and corporate governance) have now been created thanks to Covid—19. These new bureaucracies are getting money and the people getting those funds have a vested interest in continuing to get those funds.

Right. For some reason people get offended and lose their ability for rational thought if you mention this obvious fact though.

They'll rail against government corruption in the military industry, tobacco and alcohol, the healthcare industry (including the pharmaceutical industry pre-vaccines), private prisons, the energy industry. But mention that some government department or agency might have an interest in exaggerating or perpetuating the problem it is tasked with addressing, and suddenly everybody loses their minds.

But there are several places where the majority of the text is about covid-19 precautions. Example:

> Go to the basement or middle of the building. Stay away from the outer walls and roof. Try to maintain a distance of at least six feet between yourself and people who are not part of your household. If possible, wear a mask if you’re sheltering with people who are not a part of your household. Children under two years old, people who have trouble breathing, and those who are unable to remove masks on their own should not wear them.

If you're suddenly sheltering with a bunch of unknown people, then taking aggressive hygeine precautions is just sensible so you don't all get the same illness within days of a major disaster.

You also need to be constantly cleaning everything (military barracks aren't just doing that for discipline purposes).

I figured that one was for radiation, not covid.

> If you are told by authorities to evacuate to a public shelter, try to bring items that can help protect yourself and your family from COVID-19, such as hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol, cleaning materials, and two masks per person. Children under two years old, people who have trouble breathing, and people who cannot remove masks on their own should not wear them.

I beg to differ.

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