Thread by @kirubaakaran

History repeats! Here’s how some cities ‘flattened the curve-controlled the spread’ during the 1918 flu pandemic. #SpanishFlu

Philadelphia detected its first case of a deadly, fast-spreading strain of influenza on September 17, 1918.
Yet 10 days later—despite the prospect of an epidemic at its doorstep—the city hosted a parade that 200,000 people attended, that spread the virus like wildfire.

Cities that reacted earlier vs Cities reacted late

The 1918 flu, also known as the Spanish Flu, lasted until 1920 and is considered the deadliest pandemic in modern history. That’s two long years, considering lower population rate back then, not sure how long this #COVID going to take to get controlled.

Cities under lockdown for more weeks controlled the virus whereas cities that lifted the ban early faced another wave of new cases being reported.

Shortly after health measures were put in place in Philadelphia, a case popped up in St. Louis. Two days later, the city shut down most public gatherings and quarantined victims in their homes. The cases slowed. By the end of the pandemic,100 million people were dead worldwide.

It is found that death rates were around 50 percent lower in cities that implemented preventative measures early on, versus those that did so late or not at all. The most effective efforts had simultaneously closed schools, churches, and theaters, and banned public gatherings.

Cities which lifted restrictions on public gatherings less than two months after the outbreak began, a rash of new cases soon followed. But cities that kept interventions in place, none experienced a second wave of high death rates.

Over all it took almost 24 weeks to slow down the virus spread. Here’s the complete article nationalgeographic.com/history/2020/0…