Over one hundred years ago, a world recovering from a global war that had killed some 20 million people suddenly had to contend with something even more deadly: a flu outbreak.

The pandemic, which became known as Spanish flu, is thought to have begun in cramped and crowded army training camps on the Western Front.

Between 1918 and 1919, the outbreak spread rapidly across the world, and killed 50 million and 100million people within 15 months.

The speed of the pandemic was shocking; the numbers of dead bodies overwhelmed hospitals and cemeteries.

Quarantine centers, emergency hospitals, public use of gauze masks, and awareness campaigns were all undertaken swiftly to halt the spread.

But as World War I was coming to a close, millions of soldiers were still traveling across the globe, aiding the spread of the disease.

While its exact origins are still debated, it’s understood that the “Spanish Flu” did not come from Spain.

https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2018/04/photos-the-1918-flu-pandemic/557663/

The first strain of the flu was originally called "the three-day fever" and was typically described as a heavy cold. Although the flu spread around the world in just a few weeks, it seemed to have died down by the end of the summer.

But a new strain of the flu virus emerged in the fall, and this time it was significantly more dangerous. The virus took the world by storm, killing victims in just a couple of days.


By the first week of September, an average of 100 people died per day at an army camp in Massachusetts. "We have lost an outrageous number of Nurses and Drs., and the little town of Ayer is a sight," wrote one of the camp's doctors.


Photos:


Policemen stand in a street in Seattle, Washington, wearing protective masks made by the Seattle Chapter of the Red Cross, during the influenza epidemic in 1918.

Rules to reduce the spread of Spanish flu posting by the US Public Health Service.

The symptoms of the Spanish flu were particularly frightening.

Beginning with the ears, the victim's face would begin to turn blue as oxygen was deprived. A bloody liquid would begin to fill the victim's lungs until the victim would suffocate and die.


Photos:

Funeral of member of crew of U.S.S. Ascutney. Three members died in Archangel and many were sick with influenza."

Photos from isolation centres, c: 1918.

Combating influenza in Seattle in 1918, workers wearing masks on their faces in a Red Cross room.


Corpsmen in caps and gowns ready to attend patients in the influenza ward of the U.S. Naval Hospital on Mare Island, California, on December 10, 1918.

At the time there was no vaccine to prevent the spread of the virus, and no antibiotics to treat secondary infections, so authorities resorted to non-medicinal interventions including quarantines, isolation, and increased sanitation.




Photos:


Influenza victims crowd into an emergency hospital near Fort Riley, Kansas in 1918.

Left: A conductor checks to see if potential passengers are wearing required masks in Seattle, in 1918.

Right: A mask is worn by a street sweeper in New York in 1918.

Court is held in the open air in San Francisco in 1918.

Soldiers barbing outside, social distancing.


Physics class, University of Montana, Missoula, 1919.


Soldiers gargle with salt water to prevent influenza on September 24, 1918, at Camp Dix, New Jersey.

Japanese school girls wear protective masks to guard against the influenza outbreak.

Red Cross Motor Corps members on duty during the influenza epidemic in the United States, in St. Louis, Missouri, in October of 1918.

An emergency hospital set up in Brookline, Massachusetts, to care for influenza cases, photographed in October of 1918.

A nurse takes the pulse of a patient in the influenza ward of the Walter Reed hospital in Washington, D.C., in November of 1918.

We"ll overcome this one too by God's grace

It's lovely that you made a thread on this.
I am a fan of history. I took interest in plagues and cold wars since last year December.
Fascinating how each of them shaped the world we live in today.

Thanks for the pictures, OP. I'll add it to my collection.

I pray this Corona Virus be eradicated soon.

A girl stands next to her sister, who is lying in bed, in November of 1918.
The young girl became so worried that she telephoned the Red Cross Home Service, which came to help the woman fight the influenza virus.


Graves of U.S. soldiers who died of influenza in Devon, England, photographed on March 8, 1919.
The graves contain the bodies of 100 American wounded soldiers at Paignton Military Hospital that died from the epidemic of influenza that spread over England.


Serbian soldiers are treated for influenza on February 5, 1919, in Rotterdam, Netherlands, at the auxiliary hospital for Serbians and Portuguese.


Burying victims in 1918. Location unknown.

Hear ye Hear ye!;
The Spanish Flu/Influenza Pandemic was one of the most tragic events in history.


It seems Explorers and I have things in common.
History and Photography. Nice..

Explorers

In October 1918, the pandemic was at its worst, killing 195,000 Americans alone. The situation became so dire that caskets began to run out and some cities even banned funerals to prevent further spread of the virus.




Photos:

Members of the Red Cross carrying the body of an infected person.

Red Cross nurses carrying stretchers.

Masks and cubicles used in USA General Hospital No 4, Fort Porter, New York, 1918.

Doctors giving treatment to an influenza patient at the US Naval Hospital in New Orleans, 1918.

News of the virus.

People were told to always open their windows.

Men disinfecting commercial busesin 1918.

Another educative thread from explorers

Members of the American Red Cross remove Spanish influenza victims from a house at Etzel and Page avenues in 1918.

Red Cross volunteers.

Children on queue for once a day meal.


Inside a hospital in 1918.

Man disinfecting a commercial bus.

By the grace of God, this covid19 pandemic shall not reach that of Spanish flu before it becomes history. God will endow our scientists and medical personnels the wisdom and knowledge to quickly find cure for this covid19 before it gets as bad as this.


Kudos! explorer!!!

Time is nothing but a circle... Or should I say cycle?


No difference between 1235 and 2035.

The Spanish Flu infected 500million people at a time when the world population was around 2billion. It killed 50million people. That's 25% infected and 10% fatality rate.

And for those blaming China for Coronavirus, guess what? The Spanish Flu originated in Kansas, USA.
From the Bubonic Plague in the 14th Century to Covid-19, pandemics will always happen. It's up to mankind to stay ready.

Lord have mercy on us.

moderators this should be on the front page please.Highly informative!
May God heal our land.

Nice one from explorer



Please is there closing time for lalasticlala?

I was a teenager then when it happened .how time fly

The Coronavirus will also pass, it's affecting people already in many ways from health, economic activities and even social activities.

Very informative thread, we need content like this on the front page.

Thanks a lot explorer, keep up the good work.
From
Secret follower.

Explorer is among those i respect on this forum You will always learn from his post Thanks bro Good morning Stay safe

Explorers on d beat again