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March 22: Week in Photography
Your lens to the internet's most powerful photographs. 📸 MOST POWERFUL PHOTO OF THE WEEK 📸 Ted S. Warren / AP For many of us in the US, this past week has been the start of what appears to be a long and difficult path on the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. What's important to remember as we all do our part to help mitigate the spread of the virus is that this ordeal will eventually end, and life will return to a sense of normalcy.
Here, medical workers share an emotional hug during a ceremony marking their departure from Wuhan, China, after helping with the COVID-19 recovery effort on March 19. Medical teams from across China began leaving Wuhan this week after the number of new coronavirus infections dropped. In China, where this week marked the first day with no new domestic cases of COVID-19, scenes like these are bringing hope to many of the affected countries.
📸For Your 👀 Only: COVERING AN OUTBREAK WITH KIERAN KESNER With over 200,000 cases worldwide, the ongoing spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, has led to the shutdown of cities and businesses around the world, with no end in sight. We spoke with Kieran Kesner, a photographer who went to Liberia in 2014 to cover the Ebola crisis for the Wall Street Journal, to get insights on what it was like to cover an outbreak.
What precautions did you take?
I remember going to Home Depot looking for Tyvek suits but later learning that based on CDC guidelines, the basic white suits were useless against Ebola. Luckily I was able to order a number of the yellow DuPont suits to bring with me. I filled my suitcase with gloves and masks, some PPE [personal protective equipment], most of which proved useless once I got to Liberia, and boxes of Clorox tablets to make bleach.
When I arrived, there wasn’t much official guidance in terms of precautions or official safety measures. There still were no federal quarantines in place for people returning from affected countries, and it was relatively unknown what types of protective measures would be effective.
It was just as well, as I would quickly learn upon arrival to Liberia, wearing protective gear was almost impossible while working. I watched medical workers take 15-minute shifts because of the saunalike effects of wearing the protective equipment. The layers of plastic and latex were causing people to pass out from heat exhaustion.
Do any lessons apply now? Any advice for covering this current pandemic?
A lot of the basic hygiene principles are the same — wash your hands ALL THE TIME — and I feel in many ways were ingrained within me in Liberia, so I’m putting many of those practices to use now. When I got back, my partner had prepared a kit of gloves, masks, chlorine tablets, hand sanitizer, Clorox wipes, and thermometers for the self-imposed quarantine I did for 21 days. Much of that stuff was never used and has been sitting in a storage container in our basement. It’s coming in handy now.
Do any lessons apply now? Any advice for covering this current pandemic? While in Liberia in those early days of the outbreak, I witnessed what happens to a community when there is a lack of education, training, preparedness, and medical supplies.
I feel like I am seeing this now here in the US, and I am worried about our ability to beat this virus with such delayed leadership. On the other hand, the selflessness, courage, and stamina I saw in Liberia to keep others safe is also being mirrored right now in the States, and that is a beautiful reminder of the human spirit that can endure through the worst horror.
What was the hardest part of the coverage?
I had never seen people sick in this way. Human instinct is to reach out and comfort people who are physically ill or families that were emotionally distraught, but obviously this was impossible.
The hardest part was being afraid of something I couldn't see. I couldn't touch it or smell it, and there was no way to tell what was, wasn't, or could have been contaminated. And even worse, you couldn't be sure you were not infected for another 21 days. Everything — people, surfaces, my gear, my own body — became a hazard, another fear. It was this sort of thing that started to really negatively affect my state of mind. There was just no break. I really don't know how much longer I could have mentally managed the invisible.
Was anything easy?
No.
What image moved you the most?
There was an image of a health care worker just before they were planning to carry away a woman who had recently passed away. I remember standing in that room for some time, really unsure of what to do. A team of health care workers later entered and, almost like angels, leaned over the woman's body and prepared to bring her to another place. She was soon carried away and placed in the back of a pickup truck where she was driven away with others. It was a difficult photograph to make, and I don’t know if it should have been shared. It stays with me.
Do you think it’s harder to work overseas or in your backyard?
Working overseas presents itself with all kinds of challenges. When you’re on your own, you have to make sure you find the resources you need by yourself, which can be taxing. But there is always a small part of me that knows that wherever I am, I have my home to go back to. A place that provides the protection and stability needed to recharge.
That is one of the things that makes this COVID-19 virus really scary. This is happening around the world — no matter the social, economical, or geographical specifics of the population. There is no home to go back to to be safe and recharge. It is here. I am socially distancing myself at home with my partner and our first child, who is currently 5 months old.
📸THE WEEK'S PHOTO STORIES FROM BUZZFEED NEWS 📸 This week saw a dramatic escalation in the coronavirus pandemic and its effect not only on the health and well-being of people across the globe, but also in economic fallout, as new social distancing measures shake markets and cause widespread unemployment. For the BuzzFeed News photo department, we've stayed committed to offering visual perspectives that accurately and fairly depict these events as they quickly unfold.
First in this week's photo stories, photographer Sean Proctor visits a grocery store in Michigan to document what people are putting in their carts in preparation for self-isolation. Next we visit two of the major US cities impacted by the coronavirus, New York and San Francisco, as they grapple with new social distancing measures designed to halt the spread of the virus. And last, we've gathered a collection of inspiring images of the brave people working on the front lines of the pandemic to help those in need.
Find more of the week's best photo stories here.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: HOW THESE AMERICANS ARE SHOPPING FOR QUARANTINE Sean Proctor Photos from one grocery store in Michigan offer insight into how people are coping with the ongoing pandemic. SEE THE FULL STORY
NEW YORK CITY GONE QUIET Getty Images As the coronavirus continues to spread in New York City, many of the city's cultural institutions and landmarks have gone quiet. SEE THE FULL STORY
SHELTER IN PLACE IN SAN FRANCISCO Josh Edelson / Getty Images Bay Area residents in California have been told to shelter in place for three weeks in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus. SEE THE FULL STORY
THE HELPERS: PEOPLE ON THE FRONT LINES OF THE PANDEMIC John Moore / Getty Images While many Americans are self-isolating, workers and volunteers are putting themselves on the front lines of the coronavirus outbreak to help patients, customers, and neighbors. SEE THE FULL STORY
📸YOUR WEEKLY PALATE CLEANSER 📸 Danny Lawson / PA Images via Getty Images The head of a Bennett's wallaby joey emerges from its mother’s pouch at Yorkshire Wildlife Park in Doncaster, England, on March 19.
"That's it from us this time — see you next week!" —Gabriel and Kate “After following the crowd for a while, I’d then go 180 degrees in the exact opposite direction. It always worked for me.” —Elliott ErwittWant More? Go To JPG Homepage
đź“ť This letter was edited and brought to you by the News Photo team. Gabriel Sanchez is the photo essay editor based in New York and loves cats. Kate Bubacz is the photo director based in New York and loves dogs. You can always reach us here.
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