The 1918 pandemic is similar in many ways to today’s COVID-19. Coronavirus

Similar.

Just 102 years after the Spanish flu (H1N1) virus in 1918 caused the worst pandemic of the twentieth century, retired teachers said another pandemic of “very similar” flu spread across the globe States.

“Everything we see today: social distance, school closures, church closures, and non-essential business closures all happened during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-1919. “Said Michael Kimmel, who taught biology at Conite High School for 35 years, who lectured at the Connaught Public Library on the centenary of the 1918 influenza pandemic.

To demonstrate the similarity between the outbreaks of COVID-19 and H1N1, Kimmel shows a clipping of a October 29, 1918 newspaper that appeared in Conite Herald and wrote: “Children need to leave the street or be arrested.”

The illness of 1918 was called the Spanish flu because the first newspaper reports of the flu appeared in May 1918 in a neutral country of World War I and not subject to wartime censorship.

Kimmel said there was no consensus on where the virus originated, but that it spread worldwide between 1918 and 1919.

In the United States, it was first identified in a Midwest military camp in the spring of 1918 and is believed to have occurred in North America.

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) website, COVID-19 is of bat origin, while the H1N1 virus is of bird origin.

It is estimated that about 500 million people or one third of the world’s population have been infected with this virus. According to CDC researchers, deaths are estimated to be at least 50 million worldwide and approximately 675,000 deaths in the United States.

“In many ways, 1918 has begun again,” Kimmel said. “We have better medicine now, but there are many similar events.”

H1N1 mortality in 1918 was higher in people under the age of 5, 20 to 40, and 65 and older. The high mortality of healthy people, including the 20-40 year old group, was a unique feature.

COVID-19 seems to be the most difficult for the elderly and those with underlying illness.

Until October 4, 1918, Cleveland city officials were required to investigate the city’s flu status. By October 7, 500 lawsuits had been filed in Cleveland and steps were taken to limit its spread. Then, as now, isolation was considered the best precautionary measure. On October 14, theaters, cinemas, dance halls, churches and night schools were ordered to close. The school was closed on October 15th.

At that time, one of the worst things for both parishes and clergy was the ban on public funerals. According to the Cleveland Catholic parish, the priest told the flock that the dead would be personally blessed and that the funeral mass could be celebrated when the ban on public rally was lifted.

Without TV and social media, newspapers helped spread the message.

By October 21, 1918, 1,000 people were hospitalized for fatal flu. I immediately became worried about lack of beds. The business hours have been reduced, but the industry has continued to work.

“For two and a half months, the flu has killed people,” Kimmel said. “If COVID-19 is such, we are long-lived.”

The ban on public rallies, including church service, was lifted on November 13, 1918.

“We may now return to God with confidence in his love and gratitude for his mercy.” Provides a faithful update on the virus reported in the November 8, 1918 issue Catholic universe, a newspaper.

Pittsburgh has the highest mortality rate in any major US city. The flu killed at least 4,500 people there-more than one in 100. Nearly 24,000 were treated at municipal hospitals.

With no vaccine to prevent influenza or antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections, management efforts around the world include isolation, quarantine, appropriate personal hygiene, use of disinfectants, and restrictions on public gatherings. Kimmel said it was limited to non-pharmaceutical interventions.

The 1918 flu was even more mysterious than COVID-19, and Americans turned to many suspicious remedies, including drinking a pint of whiskey and eating raw onions.

Doctors prescribed aspirin for fever and epinephrine for pneumonia. Many doctors and nurses wear gauze masks for flu patients, such as today’s surgical masks.

Conneaut’s hospital was full. According to Conite Herald, the original Lakeview Hotel has been transformed into an American Red Cross-operated emergency hospital and has been able to isolate flu patients.

The death article page was full of inhabitants who died from influenza and pneumonia.

According to the Connaught Health Authority, more than 650 influenza cases were reported during the short period between October 21, 1918 and November 6, 1918.

The effects of the flu lasted until 1919. Nearby Kingsville closed the school until January. Monroe Township closed school for three weeks in mid-December. This is due in part to mild cases of colds and flu, and also to the fact that parents are afraid that students will be exposed to serious illness.

Like today’s COVID-19, the Spanish flu pandemic has shown the world how respiratory viruses can cause major disruptive events.