A public service warning that uses ping pong balls and mouse traps to visually display the importance of social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic has gone viral.

This week, as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases of coronavirus in the US continues to rise, the Ohio Department of Health shared a short clip on social media to demonstrate what can potentially happen if just one person does not follow social distancing guidelines.

In the 30-second clip, a single ping pong ball is dropped onto a surface covered with 1,000 ping pong balls placed on mouse traps.

Once the lone ping pong ball reaches the sea of mousetraps, it begins to set off a chain reaction as the traps snap shut.

In the second half of the video, another lone ping pong ball is dropped onto a surface of mouse traps, except this time the traps are widely spaced apart, allowing the ball to bounce through without setting off the traps.

“Stop the spread. Social distancing works,” it reads. “A little space makes us all safer together.”

The video has since been viewed more than 18m times on Twitter, where many people have praised the health department for the effective visual aid.

“Easily one of the best social distancing ads I’ve seen,” one person tweeted.

Another said: “The most persuasive public health ad… maybe ever.”

In Ohio, there have been 6,250 confirmed cases of coronavirus as of Saturday, while the United States has seen more than 535,173 total cases.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), social distancing, otherwise known as physical distancing, is one of the best ways of reducing the spread of coronavirus.

To practise social distancing effectively, the health organisation recommends maintaining a distance of at least six feet from others, not gathering in groups and avoiding crowded places and mass gatherings.

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