Parents Need To Keep Kids Away From Playgrounds, Shared Toys And Sports Equipment During Coronavirus Pandemic, Experts Say. HealthDay (4/7) reports, “It’s a tough task, but parents need to keep kids away from playgrounds, shared toys and sports equipment during the coronavirus pandemic, experts emphasize.” A recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that “the coronavirus can stick around on surfaces for a long time.” For example, “it takes 72 hours for the virus to become undetectable on plastic, according to the study, about 48 hours on stainless steel and cardboard, and eight hours on copper.”