CORONAVIRUS: Lincs postie urges people to keep their distance as mail is delivered

Ethan Gordon, of Boston, issued a warning through Facebook asking homeowners in lockdown to not approach delivery staff - nor to open front doors until staff have stepped away.

His Facebook post outlining four instructions the public must follow when receiving their daily post to adhere to social distancing has been shared more than 40,000 times.

And he said that he believes more people are now understanding the new procedures in place by Royal Mail and the Government in terms of social distancing and isolation.

In his original post, he said: "So I'm a Postie (and a dad, a husband, a son and an awesome friend!!) and would like to inform you of some important information. We deliver your parcels and letters every day.

"What you may not be aware of is we ARE classed as KEYWORKERS through these terrible times. The CWU (our union) have offered us to become an emergency service for the public.

"If things get worse, then us posties could be delivering healthcare products, food and even medication.

"If you see a postie coming towards your door please DO NOT OPEN YOUR DOOR. We will sign your parcels and letters for you. We will leave the parcel, food or medication on your doorstep and then knock. Give the postie enough time to step away from the door.”

Speaking to the Standard, he said posties were playing a vital role in helping people stay in touch with each other.

“A handful of customers around Boston and on my round live alone and so with us still operating we may be the only people they see and can talk to most days; now more so than ever. That to me is vitally important which makes me want to get up and continue going to work,” he said.

He stressed how vital it was that everybody continued to adhere to the guidelines. “I am viewing everybody apart from my family in my home as though they are a carrier of this virus,” he said.

“I think that's the best thing to do, as horrible as it sounds saying out loud. Follow the guidelines imposed on the post and on the Royal Mail website and we can stop the spread of this terrible illness, meaning life can get back to as normal as possible.”

Ethan said his original posting had been received very positively, although he’d had a bit of banter from colleagues.

“It’s crazy how it blew up so quick. The most important thing is that the majority of the community are now hopefully aware these are the rules until further notice and that we all hope everyone can understand.”