As the novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, continues to spread, it has infected more than 240,000 people around the world, taking the death toll to over 10,000. Many countries initiated lockdown as an emergency protocol to safeguard people and others have asked citizens to observe social distancing to abate contagion. How bad the pandemic can get depends on the nature and time of interventions. Here are visualisations of five scenarios depending on the type of intervention and their effect on its spread. (Image: Reuters)
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Scenario 1 | No intervention | If no intervention is made, more than 100 million people could become infected and around one million can die. (Graphic: News18 Creatives)
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Scenario 2 | Late intervention | Ending public gatherings, closing workplaces, mass testing and fortifying hospitals can help keeping infection rates down and reduce deaths. (Graphic: News18 Creatives)
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Scenario 3 | Moderate early interventions | Quick intervention is more important to stop the spread of virus (Graphic: News18 Creatives)
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Scenario 4 | Mild early intervention | Not just infections but shortages of protective equipment like masks and chaos in hospitals may lead to unnecessary death from coronavirus. (Graphic: News18 Creatives)
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Scenario 5 | Aggressive early intervention | Aggressive measures should be taken like, widespread testing and social distancing. (Graphic: News18 Creatives)
