Trek to Machu Picchu Postponed

How quickly things can change. I was supposed to be on a plane to Peru right now. Instead I have just finished my first day of working from home as part of the social distancing restrictions in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. 

On Dec. 31, 2019, Chinese authorities alerted the World Health Organization of pneumonia cases in Wuhan City, Hubei province, China, with an unknown cause. The planet has been in a tailspin ever since. Here's a bit of a timeline:

Jan. 7 — China identified new coronavirus as cause of the outbreak. 

Jan. 9 — China reported first death linked to the new coronavirus, now referred to as 2019-nCoV. 

Jan. 13 — Thailand reported first imported case of 2019-nCoV. 

Jan. 23 — The city of Wuhan shut down public transportation, closing the airport and railway stations in efforts to curb the spread of the 2019-nCoV. 

Jan. 27 - Canada had its first confirmed case of COVID-19. 

Jan. 30 — WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the 2019-nCoV outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, 

Feb. 1 — In China, confirmed cases totalled 14,380 and the death toll rose above 300. 

Feb. 19 — The death toll from COVID-19 surpassed 2,000 and Iran reported first COVID-19 cases. 

Feb. 26 - For the first time since the outbreak began, there were more new cases reported outside China, 459, than in China, 412. 

Feb. 27 — The number of infections globally continued to grow. There were 3,474 cases of COVID-19 — including 54 deaths — outside of China in 44 countries. 

Feb. 28 — The World Health Organization raised the global risk of spread of COVID-19 from “high” to “very high 

March 8 — Over 100 countries reported cases of COVID-19. The number of COVID-19 cases surpassed 100,000. 

March 11 — WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the global COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. 

March 12 - Alberta's Chief Medical Officer limited public gatherings, recommended not travelling outside the country and imposed 14-day self-isolation for returning travellers. 

March 13 — Europe  became the epicenter of the pandemic, with more reported cases and deaths than the rest of the world combined, apart from China. 

In Canada, there were 138 confirmed cases and one death.  

The Canadian Government advised against all non-essential travel. 

Cuso International and Charity Challenge made the decision to postpone the Cuso Challenge 2020 Trek to Machu Picchu. 

March 16 — For the first time since the beginning of the outbreak, infections and deaths outside China surpassed those within China. 

Alberta Government declared a state of public health emergency.  

March 19 — Cases of COVID-19 surpassed 200,000 globally. It took over three months to reach the first 100,000 confirmed cases and just 12 days to reach the next 100,000. 

March 22 — Global cases of COVID-19 surpassed 300,000. It took over three months to reach the first 100,000 confirmed cases, 12 days to reach 200,000 and three days to reach 300,000. 

March 24 — India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a lockdown of 21 days for the country's 1.3 billion residents. This is the largest lockdown announced since the beginning of the outbreak.  

The Chinese government announced it will lift the lockdown on Wuhan, the city at the centre of the outbreak, on April 8.

Total cases as of today, March 24: globally 396,249 and 17,252 deaths; in Canada 1,739 and 25 deaths; in Alberta 358 and 2 deaths. 

The Cuso Challenge 2020 Trek to Machu Picchu has been postponed to October 17-25, 2020. Fingers crossed that in 7 months we will be able to safely travel.

Be well. Stay safe. And take good care of each other.

Global stats come from this site: https://www.devex.com/news/covid-19-a-timeline-of-the-coronavirus-outbreak-96396