The Great Flu Pandemic of 1918. Could it happen again?

[Dreammaker]

Check out what happened in your state during the pandemic. Alaska seems to have been particularly devastated. Check out California, Georgia, and South Carolina. Here's the link: The Great Pandemic of 1918: State by State.

 

[Rabbit]

Check out what happened in your state during the pandemic. Alaska seems to have been particularly devastated. Check out California, Georgia, and South Carolina. Here's the link: The Great Pandemic of 1918: State by State.

I read a book about a year or two back on the Great Flu, before the big current scare. According to it, one Alaskan town-dweller who got the flu relatively late and saw what was happening to his neighbors took his rifle to bed with him when he began to grow ill. When rescuers found him a week or so later, still alive but barely, there were something like 25 dead sled dogs lying around his bed that he'd shot when they'd come looking for food.

A lot of the true horror stories came out of Alaska, mostly because it was winter there and people couldn't (as the article mentioned) get firewood. Whole families froze together, especially natives. But, apparently the virus had little "submutations" in it as well, that caused small pockets of extreme lethality. These are best documented aboard US troopships and even trains. But they also occurred in a couple cities, where men left for work healthy and were dead by quitting time. Many survivors could clearly remember the _exact moment_ when suddenly they became ill. This is usually a sign of a _very_ serious disease.

One side note that struck me at the time-- the book I read was written by a medical doctor, who claimed that that though the term hadn't yet been coined many of the fatalities (particularly among young people) were caused by what we today call 'ARDS', or Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome. This is a condition where the body sort of fights itself, and can be triggered by disease, smoke, toxic gases, etc. What's chilling about this is that the doc reported-- and the book was written sometime around 2000-- that ARDS is very nearly as fatal today as it was in 1918. While the death rate has been somewhat lowered, it's not by all that much....

Another interesting sidelight is that apparently many of the survivors were brain-damaged. There was actually a scientific name recognized for the specific mental illness caused by the 1918 Flu-- I've forgotten it-- but it was characterized by severe depression and a loss of interest in life. A very large percentage of those who suffered from this condition committed suicide over the following 2-3 decades. Less common were reports of paralysis, loss of the ability to speak, a general loss of IQ, etc.

We do _not_ want the 1918 flu back.

 

[cheri1122]

Rabbit: any recollection of the title or author of that book? It sounds pretty interesting [for a bookworm] and I need something to read.....

 

[ATeam]

Many people are ignoring the current flu threat or dismissing it as media hype. Diane and I take the threat seriously and have taken steps to protect ourselves; including paying closer attention to hand washing, using our own pens when signing fuel receipts, avoiding buffets and having a supply of N95 respirators (masks) (this product) in the truck in case they are needed.

We ordered the respirators back when the bird flu was in the news and government pandemic planning was going on. We thought it best to order them when they were available than when panic demand would create a shortage.

Also contributing to the decision to have respirators on hand was a couple of deliveries we did to places where the employees were wearing masks and to an area where wildfires were burning nearby and the air was difficult to breathe. We have expediter friends who were put on task at ground zero in New York City immediately after the 9-11 attacks. They did not have masks and suffered the effects for a time of breathing in that dust. For those reasons, and most recently for swine flu reasons, we carry N95 respirators.

We take some comfort in the nature of our work and truck. This is a job where human contact can be minimized. We must of course interact face-to-face with our customers but they do not gather in large numbers like office people do or factory workers in the employee cafeteria. We do not have children coming home from school where classrooms serve as a virus exchange. We do not ride a train or bus to work and sit in close quarters with other people. If it becomes wise to do so, we can avoid restaurants, churches and other events where people gather.

The current swine flu pandemic may well pass as a mild flu with no impact beyond what is happening now. We still believe carrying respirators in the truck is a good idea, as are good hand washing practices. You won't see us wearing masks and gloves at the Expedite Expo but you will see us making trips to the rest room to wash our hands after a round of handshakes.

Moot, this is for you:
- Provide expediter services in deadly pandemic conditions.
- Maintain a revenue stream while interacting with infected and contagious customers.
- React to sudden respiratory hazards.

 

[layoutshooter]

Many people are ignoring the current flu threat or dismissing it as media hype. Diane and I take the threat seriously and have taken steps to protect ourselves; including paying closer attention to hand washing, using our own pens when signing fuel receipts, avoiding buffets and having a supply of N95 respirators (masks) (this product) in the truck in case they are needed.

We ordered the respirators back when the bird flu was in the news and government pandemic planning was going on. We thought it best to order them when they were available than when panic demand would create a shortage.

Also contributing to the decision to have respirators on hand was a couple of deliveries we did to places where the employees were wearing masks and to an area where wildfires were burning nearby and the air was difficult to breathe. We have expediter friends who were put on task at ground zero in New York City immediately after the 9-11 attacks. They did not have masks and suffered the effects for a time of breathing in that dust. For those reasons, and most recently for swine flu reasons, we carry N95 respirators.

We take some comfort in the nature of our work and truck. This is a job where human contact can be minimized. We must of course interact face-to-face with our customers but they do not gather in large numbers like office people do or factory workers in the employee cafeteria. We do not have children coming home from school where classrooms serve as a virus exchange. We do not ride a train or bus to work and sit in close quarters with other people. If it becomes wise to do so, we can avoid restaurants, churches and other events where people gather.

The current swine flu pandemic may well pass as a mild flu with no impact beyond what is happening now. We still believe carrying respirators in the truck is a good idea, as are good hand washing practices. You won't see us wearing masks and gloves at the Expedite Expo but you will see us making trips to the rest room to wash our hands after a round of handshakes.

Moot, this is for you:
- Provide expediter services in deadly pandemic conditions.
- Maintain a revenue stream while interacting with infected and contagious customers.
- React to sudden respiratory hazards.

Yes, it will happen again. Anything that nature as done in the past is going to occur again. It is just like hurricanes and earthquakes, not if, but when.

 

[Turtle]

N95 respirators, like Phil notes, is a good thing to carry in the truck. They can come in handy in a number of situations. We've always had respirators around the house. I really can't remember a time when we didn't. My dad did a lot of woodworking, so that's probably why.

Any N95 filter will work, but there are actually nine different types of disposable respirator masks available, with three basic subcategories. The "N" in N95 mean not resistant to oil. There is also the "R", as in R95, that is somewhat resistant to oil, Oil-Resistant, and then the "P", as in P95, which is strongly resistant to oil, Oil-Proof. Beyond that are the numbers of 95, 99 and 100, where 95 filters out at least 95% of airborne particles, 99 filters out at least 99% of airborne particles, and 100 filters out at least 99.7% of airborne particles (excluding asbestos - you want a specific asbestos filter for that or a HE cannister filter). Here's a detailed table of what's what and why and other stuff: Respirator Classifications

I prefer the 3M™ brand Maintenance-Free Particulate Respirators for a number of reasons, partly because they are easier to get than the NanoMasks (the link above goes to the child's mask), and they have different respirators for different needs and contaminants that are also relatively easy to get if you need them. All of the 3M™ filters have electrostatically charged fibers to trap particles.

For general short term use, the 3M™ Particulate Respirator 8210, N95 filter is fine and easy to get. For all dusty conditions, like sanding, sweeping, driving through a dust storm or the smoke of a fire. Comes in a 20-pack and is available at Lowe's $19.95 and at Amazon for $12.55. At Lowe's it may come packaged as Drywall or sanding respirator or something else, but it's the 8210 model number that matters, as they're all the same filter. The 8210DW is the drywall package and the 8210Plus version has braided straps and a non-staple attachment, for example.

For longer term wear, like more than half an hour, especially in heat and humidity, the 3M™ Particulate Respirator 8511, N95 filter is the one to get. It costs twice as much, but worth every penny because it has a one-way relief valve that lets out heat and moisture and it won't fog up protective eye wear. At Amazon it's $15.19 for a 10-pack, and at Lowe's it's $19.95 for the same 10-Pack. It's an excellent all-purpose mask, and is what I have in the truck.

For stuff with oil in them, like paints, pesticides, any Pxx respirator will work, as it will be oil-Proof, but for that and things with heavy odors, like paints, aerosol glues, bleach, stockyards, many truck stops and baby diapers, I have used, and really like, the 3M™ Particulate Respirator 8577, P95, with Nuisance Level Organic Vapor Relief Valve. This one's about $32 for a box of 10, but worth it if you need it. It's gnarly. I used a bunch of ScotchGuard in the van, doors closed and not vented, and it nearly did me in. Got all kinds of sick. Next time I did anything in the van (more ScotchGuard and some painting) I used one of these respirators and didn't smell a thing (other than my own breath at 10 times normal strength, so I learned to give the inside of the respirator a shot of breath spray before beginning). The 8577 is for organic gases and other general smelly things, but if you're ever dealing specifically with acid gases, like doing some glass etching, you'd want the 3M™ Particulate Respirator 8576, P95, with Nuisance Level Acid Gas Relief Valve.

So for quick and dirty short term wear, the 8210 works great and is easy to find at most hardware stores, but if you're going to be wearing for any extended period of time, the 8511 is the one to get. Beynd that it just depends on the applications. All of these filters will protect against viruses and things, including TB.

 

[Rabbit]

Rabbit: any recollection of the title or author of that book? It sounds pretty interesting [for a bookworm] and I need something to read.....

Cheri, it's not a very entertaining book to read, I fear-- I had to slog through long parts of it that had little or nothing to do with influenza in order to learn what I wanted to know. (The subject interested me because my grandfather's brother was killed by the 1918 flu, and it also affected my family's history considerably.) But for what it's worth, here it is. You can find it used fairly cheap online, if you poke around a little. Despite it's lack of entertainment value, some people seem to consider it the definitive work on the subject.

Amazon.com: The Great Influenza: The story of the deadliest pandemic in history: John M. Barry: Books

Hope this helps!

 

[cheri1122]

It does, thank you.