FIU Students Witness COVID-19 Firsthand

Mia Petruccelli / Contributing Writer

Santiago Gomez, a junior majoring in hospitality never thought he would test positive for COVID-19. Turns out he did, along with several other FIU students.

As FIU COVID-19 cases rose amidst the reopening of campuses, Gomez witnessed students on campus failing to properly protect themselves from the virus.

“Many students just wear the same mask all day long, taking it on and off with their hands before cleaning them or pulling it down onto their necks to speak,” said Gomez.

Since early March, the pandemic has changed the lives of many. As a result of this virus many were forced to stay at home practicing social distancing guidelines instructed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Some of these changes have led to an inactive lifestyle in which people were forced to stay indoors. This has caused a series of health issues such as Vitamin D deficiency, weak immune systems, and severe anxiety according to the National Library of Medicine (NIH).

Gomez says that he is still adjusting to this reality of constantly wearing a mask but is willing to learn how to properly protect himself.

Recent studies found that pulling your mask down contaminates the inside of your mask with bacteria that your neck may have been exposed to.

It’s rare to find someone that has been untouched in some way by COVID-19, considering over 29 million people infected worldwide. 

An FIU student was one of the first known cases of COVID-19, receiving a positive test in March. A junior majoring in mass communications struggles with close friends continuing to refuse contact with him, even after five months of a negative test.

He prefers for his last name to remain anonymous due to this stigma attached to individuals with the antibody. 

Understanding the severity of the virus, this student highlights the importance of correctly wearing a mask and social distancing. 

“The same people that are reluctant to see me are the same people going out and partying without a mask. The irony,” he said.

He self-quarantined in an effort to stop the virus from spreading, especially since he was one of the first people infected in Miami.

“The spread was almost inevitable. I am very lucky that my family and I are fine, but I do have friends that have suffered deeper than me,” he said.

One senior and pre-medical student also experienced the virus early on, contracting it in March. She prefers for her name to remain anonymous for the same reason as the other student mentioned.

This student commutes to campus a couple of times a week to complete her classes. However, she says that she supports FIU’s decision to include remote learning instead of operating at full capacity. 

“I do still see friends sitting together though, sometimes without a mask. I don’t know if this is the best idea since we don’t know everyone our friends have come in contact with,” she said.

While she craves normalcy through group interaction, she feels that continuing to social distance is equally, if not as important, in order to protect herself and those around her.