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Extended social distancing cut flu outbreak in 1918By Makayla GrijalvaSILVER CITY DAILY PRESSSILVER CITY - As the UnitedStates grapples with reopening businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, and fears of a second wave mount, the 1918 influenza pandemic can serve as a precedent for the current situation.While sch(xls began to open and public gatherings resumed across most of New Mexico in mid-November 1918, a small increase of 11 u cases in Silver City prevented reopening with the rest of the state. Instead, public gatherings here were banned until mid-December, and school did not resume until early January — two moves which, overall, appeared to prevent a major outbreak in the area.“The epidemic, which in some parts of the country has been quite serious, fortunately was controlled admirably here as well as at Fort Bayard, Central, Santa Rita, Hurley, Tyrone and Lordsburg, the Silver City Independent reported on Dec.10,1918.While the death toll worldwide is estimated to have been as many as 100 million, the actual number ofdeaths is unknown. In New Mexico, especially, deaths from the disease tire difficult to estimate, since the pandemic struck prior to the establishment of a state department of health, and before the state required a certificate documenting each death. In Silver City, the death toll is estimated to have been about 30 townspeople.A statement from Silver City Mayor Percy Wilson and Grant County Health Officer C.S. Guthrey in that Dec. 10, 1918, story said that while the worst of the epidemic might have been over for the area, they still encouraged social distancing.“The people are earnestly requested to use all reasonable precautions in not having gatherings or meetings unless for some necessary purpose and individually using all precautions against spreading infection or coming in contact with infected cases,” the statement said.The 1918 strain of H1N1 firstappeared in the United States at a Kansas Army camp in March 1918, but the actual origin of the virus is disputed. Regardless of the initial source, influenza slowly spread through U.S. Army camps, eventually making its way overseas due to the effort of World War I — and to New Mexicoby the fall of 1918.By mid-October 1918, the first wave of influenza hit metropolitan areas of New Mexico full force, with Albuquerque losing its first resident to the disease Oct. 4. The next week, Albuquerque banned all public meetings, and New Mexico Gov. Washington Ellsworth Lindsey banned all public gatherings soon thereafter.At the time, Silver City still had seen no cases of the disease, and only a few confirmed cases had been reported within Grant County. Grant County Health Officer Guthrey said in the Oct. 15 edition of the Independent that the number of cases in the county was small compared to that of the rest of New Mexico.“No cases of the disease are known to exist within the town at the present time and there is no ground for public alarm, but it has been thought best to adapt the aforementioned said regulations as a measure of safety,” Guthrey said.Despite the low number of cases, the town still enforced social distancing measures ordered by the state, closing schools, movie theaters and church services beginningOct. 12.ramped up, the nearby mining town of Mogollon — only 90 miles away from Silver City — sprouted 40 cases of influenza. By Oct. 22, mining operations had shut down, and around 20of the 200 Mogollon residents infected had died from the disease. Anotherlarge mine in Socorro County also ceased operations due to an outbreak.No cases of influenza were reported in Silver City until the next week, and even then, they were few.“Dr. C.S. Guthrey, in cooperation with Mayor Percy Wilson, 10 days ago forbidding all public assemblages and closing all the schools throughout the county, as well as picture shows and churches, no doubt have had much to do with the maintenance here of normal health conditions” the Independent wrote on Oct. 22.Wilson increased social distancing measures in the town once the first few cases appeared, requiring masks be worn by all store employees and any other person in contact with the public regularly. The Red Cross of Grant County recommended that these masks be fashioned out of gauze and cheesecloth.
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Quay County Sun
Tucumcari, New Mexico, US
Wed, Jul 08, 2020
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USA 24 Jul 2022
Other Publications Near Tucumcari, New Mexico
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