One hundred
years ago we faced an epidemic that was just as bad if not worst than our
present- day HIV or Ebola. And since it was 1918 we had not yet discovered
through research exactly what it was.
It seemed a
flu. But a flu, or influenza, would only last a few days. But this new disease took
twenty-four hours incubation and appeared up to four or five days later. It would bring about headaches, chills,
dry cough, fever, weakness and loss of appetite. You would experience fatigue and,
in some cases, bronchitis and pneumonia.
This new
strain also caused people to collapse in the streets, hemorrhaging from lungs
and nose. The person may also go blue because of oxygen failure. Pus would
gather in the lungs.
It became
known as the Spanish flu, but it was worldwide.
“It was the
H1N1 influenza virus and it inflicted higher casualties than the war itself,
from Europe to Africa, from the Pacific to the Arctic, from India to Norway.
Ten to 20 per cent of those inflected died, a third of the world’s population.
As many as 2.5 million are believed to have perished during the first
twenty-four weeks of the epidemic.”, Arnold reports.
It was
thought of as a plague.
Some names
you may recognize who survived this disease are John Steinbeck, Lloyd George, Mahatma
Gandhi, Katherine Anne Porter.
Arnold details
the story using eyewitness accounts. It must not have been an easy time to live
through.
It is easy
reading. I like her writing style. You can see she did her research.
Yes, I recommend
this book for those who want to have an account of the time covered.
It is
published by St. Martin’s Press and sells for the retail price of $27.99. I am
sure you can purchase it from Amazon, but it is better you support your local
book store.
