Signal about beach alarms: important signs

– These were important signals that were sent to everyone about how important it is to keep your distance, he says.

During the summer, there were reports from much of the country that congestion was high at beaches and bathing areas. There was concern among regional infection control doctors that this could lead to the further spread of the coronavirus, but this turned out to be unjustified.

– It has now been at least two months since people began to crowd on the beaches and during that time the number of infected in Sweden has drastically decreased, not increased. The risk in that kind of environment is likely to be small, says Anders Tegnell.

“Little meaning”

The picture is confirmed by infection control doctors across the country, but at the same time it is difficult to know exactly where people have been infected.

– We have seen isolated cases, but it is easier to find in the family or in a workplace people who you know for sure have been infected, where you have someone else who is positive. In cases where you don’t really know, it’s harder to tell whether it was on the bus or on the beach, says Lisa Labbé Sandelin, an infection control doctor in the Kalmar region.

In Skåne, a small increase in cases was seen at the end of the summer, but the region does not believe this is due to the spread of the infection among Swedes who are thirsty for swimming.

– I think it had a relatively small meaning, says infection control doctor Eva Melander to SVT Nyheter Skåne.

In the popular Tylösand on the outskirts of Halmstad, around 45,000 people could flock on a single summer day. The Halland region noticed an increase in the total number of cases in late August and it was mainly young adults who became infected.

– But we certainly can’t relate it to beach congestion, says Maria Ryberg Mo, a doctor in infection control from Halland.

Propagated in coastal communities

The Västra Götaland region experienced an increase in the number of covid-19 cases during weeks 31 and 32 among the population of coastal communities.

– Then we were very afraid that we would start to spread the infection there, but then it changed, says infection control doctor Thomas Wahlberg, but notes that it is difficult to tell where people have been infected.

In the Kalmar region, other patterns were observed in the resorts during the summer.

– In the middle of the summer, we had a tendency for people who worked in the service professions in resorts to get infected. We then made an investment in the employers, to make sure there was no congestion in the workplaces. There wasn’t much else then, says Lisa Labbé Sandelin.

Limited knowledge

You’re surprised that the summer congestion didn’t contribute to the further spread of the infection, but your infection control doctor doesn’t think the concern is unwarranted.

– We know very little about this disease. We don’t know, is it so simple that just because the sun was shining, it was unfavorable weather for the virus? There must be some factor in this that we really haven’t understood, says Lisa Labbé Sandelin.

Anders Tegnell thinks it was good that there was a warning about congestion on beaches and bathing areas.

– I think they were important signals that were sent to everyone about how important it is to keep your distance and not push too hard. So we can be very happy that there was no effect at all, but it’s always good to remind people to keep their distance, he says.

Cecilia Klintö / TT

Carin Fock / TT

Daniel Kihlström / TT