- In terms of a global coronavirus update, there’s not that much good news to go around at the moment — though there are exceptions, such as in South Korea which has done a better job than most countries at getting a handle on the virus and tamping down outbreaks.
- Accordingly, the government there in recent days hosted a massive drone display that served to both honor the country’s health care workers, but also to give reminders to do things like keep wearing face masks and wash your hands so that the chance of a new COVID-19 wave is diminished in the country.
- Globally, more than 11.5 million confirmed cases of the coronavirus have been reported, according to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University. Likewise, more than 535,000 people have died during the coronavirus pandemic.
Much of the news coverage about the coronavirus pandemic right now has focused on the countries and places around the world that are struggling the most, such as the US — where state-level outbreaks seem almost out of control in places like Texas.
One country that’s been pretty stellar in its fight against the coronavirus, on the other hand, is South Korea, which the latest stats from Johns Hopkins University show has only seen a little more than 13,000 confirmed cases since the start of the pandemic and 284 reported deaths. Along those lines, to present a thank-you to its front-line medical staff and healthcare workers around the country, the government hosted an incredible drone display over the Han River in recent days, in the country’s capital city of Seoul.
The incredible display, which you can check out in full below, lasted 11 minutes or so and included 300 drones, with the whole thing organized by the government’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport.
At one point during the display, you can see the drones arrange themselves in illuminated patterns that remind people to still wear face masks, wash your hands, and socially distance — and, finally, to “cheer up” and not let this global pandemic dampen your spirits more than is necessary. All of which are valuable reminders, since just because South Korea is much farther along in their victory over the virus than we are, that’s not to suggest they aren’t worried about letting their guard down and dealing with an all-new wave of the coronavirus.
Interestingly, while South Korea has done quite well fighting the virus they’re also dealing with a smaller-scale version of the same antipathy against certain protections as we’re seeing across the US — anti-face mask zealots, and the like. Indeed, police in South Korea recorded hundreds of fights in June alone, largely on public transport, which were related to disputes over people not wearing face masks, according to The Guardian.
