Urgent Petition To Keep RV Campgrounds Open - R-pod Owners Forum

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StephenH

podders Helping podders - pHp

Joined: 29 Nov 2015
Location: Wake Forest, NC
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Topic: Urgent Petition To Keep RV Campgrounds Open
Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 11:11am

Likewise, it looks like our travel plans for this year are disrupted. However, if something happens and we need to go to Florida again to see my parents, the RPod is the best thing to go with as I think the RV park where we have stayed several times would again allow us to stay. It also allows us to have some social distancing as opposed to a motel.

StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,...

ouR escaPOD mods
Former RPod 179
Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS

lostagain

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Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 10:19am

There are lots of vectors to spread the infection, from direct contact with ill people to pump out stations that have aerosolized fecal matter depositing the virus on the apparatus used in connecting the drain tube and clean up hose.

At this point, leisure travel, as much as we all want to get out on the road, is not in the best interest of the common good. It's time to stay home and protect our neighbors and fellow Americans/Canadians/or anyone else in our world.

For me, personally, it's driving me nuts! I have a brand new trailer and TV and am as anxious to get out on the road as anyone. But in this especially dangerous time, we need to put the interest of the community above our own personal preferences. None of us is getting any younger. Our time to travel is limited and disappearing. Nevertheless, as Woodmiester suggested, being out on the road and falling ill, especially we geezers, is going to present severe hardships not only on ourselves but our loved ones and our communities.

So, stay home and give those who have to be on the road for a living transporting our food and other essential supplies a fighting chance. We need them to be healthy.

Never leave footprints behind.
Fred & Maria Kearney
Sonoma 167RB
Our Pod 172
2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost

Woodmiester View Drop Down

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Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 9:20am

We have curtailed our plans for this summer.

This virus hits seniors particularly fast and hard. To be on the road far from home and one or both of us gets extremely sick, besides presenting an extreme hardship on your partner, but if something worse should happen, what then????

Nope, just going to stay home for awhile and enjoy spending the summer with my honey!!

Swampfox

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Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 8:19am

Originally posted by StephenH

Utah is going a bit too far. There will be travelers who need some form of accommodation. The western states are too big to drive through in a day generally. What happens if someone is trying to get home and has to go through Utah and the gas stations are shut down? There are unintended consequences to such a decree. What about the truckers who need to deliver supplies and then get some rest? Such a decree is short-sighted.

They are not alone in this!

http://www.campendium.com/camping/covid-19-state-by-state-campground-closures-responses/

Byways no Highways
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StephenH

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Location: Wake Forest, NC
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Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 8:03am

Utah is going a bit too far. There will be travelers who need some form of accommodation. The western states are too big to drive through in a day generally. What happens if someone is trying to get home and has to go through Utah and the gas stations are shut down? There are unintended consequences to such a decree. What about the truckers who need to deliver supplies and then get some rest? Such a decree is short-sighted.

StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,...

ouR escaPOD mods
Former RPod 179
Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS

Olddawgsrule View Drop Down

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Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 7:35am

Originally posted by StephenH

Private RV parks are not subject to this.

Sorry, but not so.. Utah info (excerpt):

The order states in part:
"Overnight Lodging. Effective at 10 pm (MST) on March 17, 2020, all overnight and short-term lodging facilities (including but not limited to hotels, motels, condos, townhomes, guest homes, RV parks, and all camping on public or private lands)

ATTENTION: The following order will be strictly enforced. Violation of the order is a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to 6 months in jail, and fines of up to $1,950. Violations also could result in the revocation of overnight accommodation licensure.

Byways no Highways
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Olddawgsrule View Drop Down

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Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 7:31am

Originally posted by offgrid

Then the question becomes what happens next. Covid19 isn't going to just disappear. We can't lock down the economy forever. Until there is herd immunity (either developed naturally by a majority of the population getting the disease and recovering) or artificially (via a vaccine) it will keep circulating with recurring outbreaks.

So I'm not planning on getting in a normal camping season this summer.

This I do agree somewhat. Since there still is no vaccine for earlier SARS or MERS, there will probably be none forthcoming for this version either. Like the past versions, it will be natural immunization to stop this and returning to good hygiene practices.

I have no intentions of changing any plans of travel I have coming up. I also don't travel into highly populated areas of the unwashed..

Byways no Highways
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Olddawgsrule View Drop Down

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Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 7:24am

Originally posted by lostagain

One point I forgot to mention: I had mentioned that Convid-19 can be found in feces. Pump out stations are not good places to be right now and really should be closed.

Can the COVID-19 virus spread through sewerage systems?

CDC is reviewing all data on COVID-19 transmission as information becomes available. At this time, the risk of transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19 through sewerage systems is thought to be low. Although transmission of COVID-19 through sewage may be possible, there is no evidence to date that this has occurred. This guidance will be updated as necessary as new evidence is assessed.

SARS, a similar coronavirus, has been detected in untreated sewage for up to 2 to 14 days. In the 2003 SARS outbreak, there was documented transmission associated with sewage aerosols. Data suggest that standard municipal wastewater system chlorination practices may be sufficient to inactivate coronaviruses, as long as utilities monitor free available chlorine during treatment to ensure it has not been depleted.

Wastewater and sewage workers should use standard practices, practice basic hygiene precautions, and wear personal protective equipment (PPE) as prescribed for current work tasks.

Two important parts of this: Duration & Protection, neither are at an elevated level. Personally, I have never found a dump station to be a place a wish to be at.

Byways no Highways
2017 Tacoma
Truck Camper Build
2004 F150 My Overlander

offgrid

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Posted: 19 Mar 2020 at 4:31am

It is certainly possible to contain this, given draconian measures, at least the initial outbreak. Data from several east Asian countries shows this. But those cultures place less emphasis on individual choice than we do, so I'm doubtful the same methods can work quickly here or in western Europe. Italy's reported fatalities will most likely exceed China's in the next couple of days. Their fatality rate is over 8%.

So I'm not planning on getting in a normal camping season this summer.

In the meantime our rpod is being put to good use temporarily as a quarantine zone for our grandson, who has to continue to work at his relatively high exposure janitorial job. Many of us higher risk old folks can shelter in place but most young working ppl don't have that luxury. The rpod is a great temporary solution in our case, at least until we have to find a place to dump the black tank, as lostagain correctly points out.

1994 Chinook Concourse
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Posted: 18 Mar 2020 at 9:49pm

I won't be at all surprised if private campgrounds are closed soon, just like bars, restaurants, movie theaters, etc., etc. Covid-19 is a massive public health issue that will, one way or another, roll right over just about every aspect of life as we know it. I'd prefer to do everything possible to contain this upfront, if that's even possible.

My retirement accounts are already seriously trashed and they are going to get worse before they get better. LIke everything else.

I gotta go with the idea of not going to campgrounds for the time being. Maybe something can be figured out about full-time RVers, but I think it will probably involve sheltering in place, not the freedom of the open road.

2010 176
FJ Cruiser