Keep wearing your face mask
By M.L. Wright
Bubonic Plague, 1347
The Bubonic Plague (aka The Black Death) was spread by the bite of an infected rat or flea and then person-to-person. In the fall of 1347, merchant ships left the Crimea and landed in Sicily. The sailors unknowingly carried with them the bacillus that causes Bubonic Plague.
Over the next five years, 20 million people died — one-third of Europe’s population. Doctors of the 1300s used crude applications such as bloodletting and boil-lancing to treat the disease. People with the plague were shunned or abandoned altogether. The plague affected cows, sheep, goats, pigs and chickens, which created massive food shortages.
1918 Flu Pandemic
The 1918 flu pandemic is likely the worst pandemic in human history. On March 4, 1918, during World War I, Army Private Albert Gitchell reported to the hospital at Fort Riley, Kansas, with a sore throat, fever and headache. By the end of the day, more than 100 soldiers reported with the same symptoms.
Soon there were similar reports from other military bases around the country. With the massive troop movements of the war, the virus quickly spread to Europe. Military censors minimized reports of the disease to maintain morale, but newspapers were free to report on the epidemic in Spain, which had not entered the war. Hence, even though the first confirmed cases were in the United States, the disease became known as the Spanish flu.
By the time the war ended in November 1918, an estimated 28% of Americans were infected with the virus. Because there was no effective way to fight it, businesses were shut down and all were ordered to wear masks. In San Francisco, residents were fined $5 for not wearing a mask in public, a large fine at the time.
There were skeptics. Philadelphia Director of Public Health, Dr. William Krusen, said, “Philadelphia does not have the Spanish flu,” and in September 1919, ordered the Liberty Loan Parade to go on as usual. Thousands attended, and the virus quickly spread. In just 10 days, 1,000 died and another 200,000 were sick.
The pandemic finally waned in 1920 due primarily to survivors acquiring immunity. By that time, the 1918 flu pandemic had killed more than 675,000 Americans and an estimated 50 million people worldwide.
Other pandemics
From 1957‒1958, the H2N2 virus killed 116,000 people in the U.S.; a 1968 pandemic caused by the H3N2 virus led to 100,000 deaths in the U.S.; and in 2009‒2010 the H1N1 virus killed more than 12,000 Americans.
COVID-19, 2020
COVID-19 has caused more than 500,000 deaths in the United States, and more than 2,000,000 worldwide. The disease spreads from person to person through respiratory droplets from coughing, sneezing or talking. Droplets can spread up to 30 feet. A mask can stop the spread of
the virus.
After a challenging year, things are beginning to improve. We have new vaccines, and the number of new cases and deaths are trending in the right direction. But we still have a long way to go.
There is a statewide mask mandate still in effect. You must wear a mask when you are in public, including public transportation. Remember the more than 500,000 who have died. Please wear a mask for you, for your family, for me and for everyone in the community.