Eva died in the
Influenza Epidemic hat devastated the country in 1918
Hawera & Normanby Star, 27 November
1918 POSITION IN HAWERA. The position continues to show a
marked improvement, and there is every indication that health
fighters have the visitation now well in hand. All the reports
from the house to house visitors are distinctly encouraging.
This applies to the town. There are yet some serious cases in
the isolation hospital since yesterday there were three deaths
reported in this hospital. Alfred Ryan, aged 33, married
laborer employed by the Post and Telegraph Department '
Charles Frederick West, aged 42 married, Hawera County Council
employee. Eva Griffin, aged 16, daughter of Mrs Griffin,
Inaha. The mother is also ill in the hospital, and the father
is believed to be a prisoner of war in Germany. To date there
"have been 142 admissions to the temporary isolation hospital,
and 24 deaths. At present there are 39 patients in the
institution. Dr. Thomson arrived from the camp last night to
assist the local medical men. The mortality amongst the Maoris
has been particularly heavy, and some families have suffered
very sadly. One well-known Maori lost his wife and three
children. |
Hawera & Normanby Star, 6 January 1919 -
THANKS. MRS. GRIFFIN and family, of Inaha, wish to thank
the Doctors, Nurses, the Red Cross, and the Milkers who so
kindly helped them during the Epidemic, also the friends who
sympathised with them in their recent sad bereavement.
Hawera & Normanby Star, 26 November
1919: IN MEMORIAM.
GRIFFIN: In sad but loving memory of
our dear daughter and sister, Eva Elizabeth Griffin, who died
at Hawera of influenza on November 26th, 1918, at the age of
16 years. Days of sadness oft come o'er us, Hidden secret
tears still flow; But memory keeps our loved one near us,
Though she died one year ago. Inserted by her loving parents,
sisters, and brothers
It was New Zealand's worst public
health disaster, with more than 9000 deaths in about eight
weeks. The misnamed "Spanish Flu" killed about 50 million
people and infected hundreds of millions after it spread
around the world in 1918-19. It killed almost three
times as many as World War I, which lasted for four
years. |
1910 |
The pandemic was brought to New Zealand by
soldiers returning from the war in Europe, especially to
military training camps such as Trentham (77 deaths) and
Featherston (3220 cases treated, 177 deaths). Returning home,
they spread it throughout the country.
And like the 14th-century Black Death
plague, many victims turned black. Death could occur within a
day of contracting the disease, but usually it was 5-10 days.
Towns and cities became virtual ghost towns as the flu reached
it peak, with thousands suffering at home or in temporary
hospitals. Public gatherings and tangi were prohibited in a
bid to curb the spread of infection. Half New Zealand's
population caught it.
Following World War I, an
influenza pandemic swept around the world. In two months
New Zealand lost about half as many people to influenza as it
had in the whole of the First World War. The war had killed
16,500 New Zealanders in four years. In just eight weeks,
the flu wiped out 8600 - Lost just as many solders like Arthur
arrived home
Scientists
had not yet discovered viruses so there were no laboratory
tests to diagnose, detect, or characterize flu viruses.
Prevention and treatment methods for flu were limited. There
were no vaccines to protect against flu virus infection, no
antiviral drugs to treat flu illness, and no antibiotics to
treat secondary bacterial infections like pneumonia. Efforts
to prevent the spread of disease were limited to
non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), including promotion
of good personal hygiene, and implementation of isolation,
quarantine, and closures of public settings, such as schools
and theaters. Some cities imposed ordinances requiring face
masks in public.
100 years later, we've
come a long way in developing methods to track, prevent and
treat flu, but there is still a long way to
go. |
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