Poet about to flee pandemic (4)
I believe the answer is:
ovid
'poet' is the definition.
(Roman poet)
'about to flee pandemic' is the wordplay.
'about' becomes 'c' (abbreviation for circa).
'to flee' is a deletion indicator (some letters flee or run away).
'pandemic' becomes 'covid' (covid-19 pandemic).
'covid' with 'c' taken away is 'OVID'.
(Other definitions for ovid that I've seen before include "Void for old Roman poet" , "Writer" , "Roman love poet" , "Old linesman" , "Classical poet" .)